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CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE  AND 
THE  CATHOLIC  FAITH 


^jn^g^ 


THE    MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

NEW  YORK    •    BOSTON   •    CHICAGO   •    DALLAS 
ATLANTA   •    SAN  FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN  &  CO..  Limited 

LONDON   •    BOMBAY    •    CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE  MACMILLAN  CO.  OP  CANADA,  Ltd. 

TORONTO 


CHRISTIAN    SCIENCE   AND 
THE   CATHOLIC   FAITH 

Including  a  Brief  Account  of  New 

Thought  and  Other  Modern 

Mental  Healing  Movements 


BY 


A.  M.  BELLWALD,  S.M.,  S.T.L. 

M^ARIST   college,   WASHINGTON,   D.C. 


A  Dissertation  Submitted  to  the  Facvlty  of  Sacred  Sciences 
of  the  Catholic  University  of  America  in  'partial  fulfbllment 
of  the  requirements  for  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Sacred  Theology 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 
1922 


AU  rights  reserved 


vE>>^ 


PRINTED  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  OP  AMBEIOA 


COPTMOHT,   1922, 
By  the  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Set  up  and  printed.     Published   May,  1922. 


W 


Press  of 

J.  J.  Little  &  Ives  Company 

New  York.  U.  S.  A. 


Smprimi  potest 

H.  DE  La  Chapelle,  S.  M. 
Provincialis 

^tfjU  ofififtat 

Charles  F.  Aiken^  S.  T.  D. 
Censor  deputatus 

imprimatur 

•f"  Michael  J.  Curley,  D.D. 

Archiepiscopus 
Baltimorensis 

Baltimore,  Md.,  March  23,  1922. 


^ 


'1  O    I  P"  "^v  r^ 


PREFACE 

Why  deal  once  more  with  Christian  Science?  With  so  many 
works  already  on  the  market,  why  increase  the  output  by  an- 
other study  on  this  much  debated  subject?  Christian  Science 
will  run  its  course,  as  other  systems  of  thought,  once  much  in 
evidence,  have  run  theirs,  and  will  not  be  materially  influenced 
by  the  discussions  to  which  it  has  given  rise.  Yet  to  discuss 
the  subjects  of  the  day  is  an  intellectual  need.  The  process  of 
winnowing  out  truth  from  error  must  go  on  without  interrup- 
tion, the  more  so  in  this  case,  as  Christian  Science  skims  over 
many  subjects  of  the  very  highest  importance,  opening  up  to 
controversial  minds  fair  vistas  of  debatable  ground. 

But  why  associate  New  Thought  with  its  traditional  foe? 
The  answer  must  be  sought  in  the  treatise  itself,  which  makes 
plain  that,  whatever  minor  differences  there  may  be  between 
these  two  organizations,  their  wider  aims  and  common  pursuits 
unite  them  in  a  clearly  defined  group,  and  blend  together  natu- 
rally in  a  common  discussion. 

Mind  healing  is  not  exactly  an  American  invention  or  mo- 
nopoly. We  shall  see  that  it  is  practically  coeval  and  coexten- 
sive with  the  human  race.  Yet  in  our  own  days  and  place  it  has 
taken  on  hues  and  shapes  that  differentiate  it  radically  both 
from  its  remoter  and  its  nearer  ancestors,  and  it  is  assuming 
proportions  that  may  yet  put  its  European  prototypes  com- 
pletely in  the  shade.  In  its  American  dress,  it  has  crossed  both 
the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific,  and  is  making  a  successful  bid  for 
world  supremacy  in  its  chosen  field.  Under  these  circumstances, 
an  inquiry  into  the  origin,  the  underlying  principles,  and  the 
methods  of  these  movements  must  prove  of  interest,  even  if, 
from  a  religious  point  of  view,  they  are  not  of  sufficient  moment 
to  claim  attention. 

Such  an  investigation  is  no  longer  a  pioneer  work.  Many 
Protestant  authors  have  turned  their  attention  to  this  newer 

vii 


viii  Preface 

Protestantism.  Not  a  few  scent,  in  this  new  gospel  of  health, 
danger  for  what  they  are  pleased  to  call  orthodox  Christian- 
ity ;  their  works  are  polemical  in  character,  and,  on  the  whole, 
of  but  little  intrinsic  worth.  Others,  not  particularly  inter- 
ested in  the  Churches,  have  been  attracted  by  the  psychological 
problems  which  the  real  or  pretended  successes  of  these  mind- 
healers  have  forced  on  their  consideration.  These,  though  pur- 
suing strictly  scientific  methods  of  investigation,  but  too  often 
mar  their  work  by  an  ill-disguised  hostility,  or  a  studied  indif- 
ference to  revealed  religion,  so  that  hardly  any  work  of  either 
class  could  be  unreservedly  recommended. 

From  the  Catholic  viewpoint,  few  of  the  publications  that 
have  appeared,  valuable  though  they  are  in  their  own  way,  can 
be  said  to  do  justice  to  the  subject.  A  fairly  complete  list  of 
these  books,  pamphlets  and  articles  will  be  found  in  the  bibli- 
ography, page  262.  Among  these  we  might  single  out,  as  of 
greater  excellence.  Father  Lambert's  Christian  Science  before 
the  Bar  of  Reason,  Fr.  Thurston's  Christian  Science,  in  Lec- 
tures on  the  History  of  Religions,  Fr.  Searle's  work  entitled 
The  Truth  about  Christian  Science,  and  especially — in  its  scien- 
tific aspect — Dr.  Walsh's  various  works  on  psychotherapy. 
The  present  essay  proposes,  besides  giving  a  short  historical 
survey  of  mental  healing,  followed  by  a  discussion  of  the  causes 
that  may  serve  to  account  for  whatever  success  the  movement 
has  achieved,  to  discuss  from  the  Catholic  standpoint  more 
fully  than  has  as  yet  been  done,  its  philosophical  and  religious 
presuppositions,  implications  and  doctrinal  statements. 

There  yet  remains  for  me  to  fulfill  the  pleasant  duty  of 
thanking  all  those  who  have  helped  me  in  the  preparation  of  this 
essay  in  any  way  whatever,  by  counsel,  correction,  or  revision 
of  the  manuscript.  I  desire  more  particularly  to  express  my 
sincere  thanks  to  Rev.  Charles  C.  Aiken,  D.D.,  Dean  of  the 
Faculty  of  Sacred  Sciences  at  the  Catholic  University  of 
America,  who  suggested  this  work  and  who,  by  advice,  encour- 
agement, and  kind  interest,  very  materially  cooperated  in  its 
completion. 


-Ik. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  I. 

PAGE 

Mind  Cures  of  the  Past  and  Present 1 

Extent  of  Mental  Healing.  Mind-healing  in  Assyria 
and  Babylonia.  In  Persia.  In  Egypt.  Modem  paral- 
lels. Egyptian  beliefs  about  sickness  and  healing. 
Greek  Mental  Cures,  ^sculapius  ApoUonius  of  Tyana. 
Epidaurus.  Mental  healing  in  the  Roman  Empire.  Ef- 
fects of  Christianity  on  Pagan  superstitions.  Christian 
miracles  not  on  a  par  with  Pagan  cures.  Celsus  attacks 
Christian  miracles.  Magic  in  Christian  antiquity  and 
in  the  Middle  Ages.  Theodosius  II.  Why  people  re- 
sorted to  magic.  Views  of  so-called  scientists.  Avicenna 
and  menticulture.  Prayer  and  mental  healing.  Delrio 
on  superstitions.     Christian  Science  no  new  discovery. 

CHAPTER  II. 

^  The  Modern  Mind-Cure  Movements 10 

Mental  healing  in  modem  times.  Gassner's  cures. 
Podmore  on  Gassner  and  Mesmer.  Mesmer's  "baquet." 
His  philosophical  views.  Animal  Magnetism.  Mesmer's 
followers^  Deslon  and  the  marquis  de  Puysegur.  The 
abbe  Faria.  Mesmerism  after  the  French  Revolution. 
The  Academic  des  Sciences  on  animal  magnetism.  Ber- 
trand  and  Dr.  Braid.  Mesmerism  in  America.  Poyen 
and  Collyer.  "Dr."  Quimby  and  his  control,  Lucius 
Burkmar.  Quimby's  theories.  Evans  popularizes  Quim- 
byism.  Mrs.  Eddy.  Her  early  life.  She  marries 
George  Washington  Glover.  Her  widowhood  and  second 
marriage  to  Dr.  Patterson.  He  abandons  her.  Mrs. 
Eddy's  partnership  with  Richard  Kennedy.  Her  third 
marriage,  to  Asa  Gilbert  Eddy.  After  his  death  Calvin 
A.  Frye  becomes  Mrs.  Eddy's  manager.  She  adopts  a 
foster  son.  Mrs.  Eddy's  literary  activities.  Her  death. 
Spread  of  Christian  Science.  Social  status  of  Christian 
Scientists.     Christian  Science  proves  profitable.     Mrs. 


Contents 

pagc 
Eddy's  greed  for  money.  Origin  of  Christian  Science. 
Julius  A.  Dresser.  The  New  Thought  movement  un- 
der way.  H.  Wood  and  R.  W.  Trine.  The  new  phi- 
losophy of  life.  Greenacre  Conferences.  The  Meta- 
physical Club.  New  Thought  conventions.  Mind-healing 
in  Chicago,  San  Francisco,  Denver,  St.  Louis,  Cleve- 
land. New  Thought  organization  and  congresses.  Men- 
tal science  literature.  Charcot  and  Bernheim.  Sug- 
gestion as  a  therapeutic  agent.  Dubois  and  Freud. 
Mental  healing  in  Protestant  Churches.  Mr.  Hickson. 
The  Emmanuel  movement. 


CHAPTER  III. 

('   True  Origin  of  Christian  Science 35 

Claims  of  Mrs.  Eddy.  Her  apotheosis  among  her 
followers.  Mary  Baker's  physical  and  mental  endow- 
ments. Her  schooling.  Her  religious  dispositions. 
Did  she  hear  voices  and  have  a  dispute  with  her  pastor? 
The  date  of  her  alleged  revelation.  The  fall  at  Lynn. 
How  Science  and  Health  was  written.  Subsequent 
changes.  Its  relation  to  Quimby's  "Essays."  Mrs. 
Eddy  and  Mr.  Spofford.  Malicious  Animal  Magnetism. 
Mr.  Wiggin's  revision.  Importance  of  the  "textbook." 
The  textbook  and  the  Bible.  The  Church  Manual  and 
the  textbook.  The  textbook  is  ordained  Pastor.  Chris- 
tian Science  services.  Commercialism  in  Christian 
Science.  Mrs.  Eddy's  ideas  concerning  revelation. 
Prohibition  to  teach  for  a  year.  Christian  Science 
spoons.  Mr.  Peabody  on  Mrs.  Eddy's  alleged  revela- 
tion. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Metaphysical    Basis    of    Christian    Science    and    New 

Thought 60 

Difficulty  of  understanding  Mrs.  Eddy.  Mrs.  Eddy's 
terminology.  Difference  between  Mind  and  mind.  Mrs. 
Eddy's  conception  of  the  Deity.  Is  Christian  Science 
Pantheistic.''  Unreality  of  matter.  God  and  the  ma- 
terial world.  Untrust worthiness  of  our  senses.  A  di- 
rect refutation  not  possible.  Mrs.  Eddy's  inconsistencies. 


Contents  xi 


PAGE 


Mrs.  Eddy*s  idealism  not  essentially  different  from  other 
idealistic  philosophies.  New  Thought  and  Idealism. 
The  Oversoul.  Things  are  thoughts  and  thoughts  are 
things.     Mysticism  of  Christian  Science. 


CHAPTER  V. 

^  Belief — Faith — Understanding 73 

Mrs.  Eddy's  psychology.  Description  of  belief.  Three 
groups  of  false  beliefs  so-called.  Reductio  ad  absur- 
dum.  Mortal  Mind.  Mrs.  Eddy  no  puritan  on  close 
definitions.  The  works  of  mortal  mind  so-called.  Mortal 
mind  creates  all  the  organism.  A  Pandora  box  of  all 
evils.  Creates  an  unhealthy  atmosphere.  How  a 
mother's  fears  may  create  her  child's  illness.  Mortal 
mind,  mind-cures  and  medicine.  Mortal  mind  vs.  hu- 
man mind.  Human  belief  an  autocrat.  Sickness  pref- 
erable to  erroneous  beliefs.  Why  Mrs.  Eddy  discredits 
other  mental  healing.  Faith  as  a  curative  factor.  Dis- 
tinction between  faith  and  belief.  What  is  meant  by 
understanding.  Struggle  between  belief  and  under- 
standing both  in  the  individual  and  in  the  race.  Purga- 
tion continues  in  the  hereafter.  Understanding  estab- 
lishes new  relations.  Truth  and  error  in  Christian 
Science.  Mrs.  Eddy's  relations  to  Liberalism  in  The- 
ology.   Her  extravagances. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

1/  Malicious  Animal  Magnetism 91 

Malicious  Animal  Magnetism  is  Mrs.  Eddy's  chief 
invention.  History  of  the  term.  W.  W.  Wright  attacks 
Eddyism.  Mrs.  Eddy  condemns  manipulation.  Mrs. 
Eddy  must  explain  her  former  conduct.  How  the 
chapter  on  malicious  animal  magnetism  got  into  the  first 
edition  of  Science  and  Health.  Richard  Kennedy  and 
malicious  animal  magnetism.  M.  A.  M.  becomes  a  life^ 
long  obsession.  Not  inconsistent  with  Christian  Sci- 
ence teaching.  Legislation  against  mental  malpractice. 
M.  A.  M.  and  the  civil  courts.  The  famous  witchcraft 
case  in  Salem,  Mass.  Two  brands  of  malicious  animal 
magnetism.  Mrs.  Eddy's  changes  of  residence  due  to 
her  fear  of  M.  A.  M.  M.  A.  M.  and  inanimate  ob- 
jects.    It  interferes  with  the  printing  of  the  magazine. 


xii  Contents 


Mrs.  Eddy's  sufferings  caused  by  M.  A.  M.  Her  house- 
hold. Adverse  treatment  against  M.  A.  M.  The  new 
freedom.  Mr.  Eddy  and  the  new  freedom.  Mrs.  Eddy 
summons  a  physician.  Her  husband  dies.  An  autopsy. 
Mrs.  Eddy's  frantic  fears.  Mrs.  Eddy's  need  of  the 
doctrine  of  malicious  animal  magnetism. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

t'THE  Fact  of  Mental  Cures 109 

Division  of  modern  mind-cures.  Mrs.  Eddy  claims 
unlimited  healing  powers.  Mr.  Evans  and  mind-cures. 
Christian  Science  cures  reported  in  the  "textbook,"  in 
the  "Journal"  and  in  the  "Congressional  Record."  Sen- 
ator Works  pleads  for  Christian  Science  in  the  U.  S. 
Senate.  Miss  Meek.  The  infant  child  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  A.  K.  Wine.  Dr.  Burton's  cure.  A  summary  of 
cures.  Healing  as  a  religious  rite.  Expert  opinion. 
Professor  William  James  on  healthy-mindedness.  Fail-  , 
ures  are  no  absolute  refutation.  Dr.  Reed  on  the  success 
of  Christian  Science.  Dr.  James  J.  Walsh.  Extent  of 
mental  healing.  Are  organic  diseases  open  to  mental 
influences?  Views  of  physicians  contrasted  with  those 
of  modern  mind  healers.  Sadler,  Walsh,  Bemheim, 
Worcester.  The  practice  of  modern  mind-healers  con- 
flicts with  their  theories.  Practitioners  are  advised  to 
decline  infectious  diseases,  may  consult  M.D.'s.  Al- 
leged dangers  of  diagnosing  a  case.  Condemnation  of 
the  medical  profession.  Physicians  qualify  their  state- 
ments, as  to  organic  diseases.  Dr.  Cabot  and  Dr. 
Paget  on  Christian  Science  cures.  The  challenge  of 
Dr.  Townsend. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Methods  of  Mental  Healing 129 

A  variety  of  methods.  Practice  less  radical  than 
theory.  Food  and  drink.  Mrs.  Eddy's  views  on  hy- 
giene. Her  practice.  Classification  of  mental  healing 
methods.  "Doctoring"  the  soul.  Mrs.  Eddy's  instruc- 
tions to  practitioners.  Faith  a  factor  in  cures.  Need 
of  a  spiritual  housecleaning.  How  to  treat  a  relapse. 
Difference  between  hypnotic  cures  and  modern  mind- 
healing.  The  tactual  and  the  visual  method.  The  silent 
treatment.  Distant  treatment.  The  verbal  or  vocal 
treatment.     These  methods  become  a  rule  of  life. 


Contents  xiu, 

CHAPTER  IX. 

PAea 
Mind  and  Body 143 

The  real  explanation  to  be  sought  in  the  intimate  re- 
lations between  mind  and  body.  The  Scholastic  phi- 
losophy avoids  both  materialism  and  excessive  idealism. 
The  soul  as  the  forma  substantialis  of  the  body.  The 
intellectual  soul  as  the  principle  of  all  activity  in  the 
human  compound.  Scholasticism  vs.  Platonism.  Dis- 
tinction of  faculties.  The  imagination  as  mediating 
between  sense  and  intellect.  The  bodily  organism  is 
affected  by  the  imagination.  The  Scholastics  were  chary 
about  practical  application  of  their  theory.  Excessive 
claims  for  the  imagination.  A  certain  influence  admitted 
by  all. 

CHAPTER  X. 

Explanation  of  Mental  Cures 153 

Mrs.  Eddy's  explanations  do  not  explain.  Are  Chris- 
tian Science  cures  natural  or  supernatural.'*  Christian 
Science  vs.  hypnotic  cures.  Mrs.  Eddy's  opposition  to 
hypnotism.  The  effect  of  waking  suggestions  and  auto- 
suggestion. Meaning  of  suggestion  and  of  subconscious 
mind.  Effects  of  suggestion.  Mechanism  of  mental 
healing.  Respective  claims  of  the  intellect  and  the  will. 
The  will  according  to  Mrs.  Eddy  is  essentially  evil. 
The  will  as  a  therapeutic  agent.  Its  limits.  The 
will  open  to  suggestion.  The  intellect,  inasmuch 
as  it  perceives  things  as  either  good  or  bad.  The 
imagination  as  a  therapeutic  agent.  Benedict  XIV.  on 
the  power  of  the  imagination.  The  heart  in  mind- 
healing.  Modem  mind-cures  explained  according  to 
these  principles.  Christian  Science  causes  a  real  mental 
revolution  in  many  persons. 

CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Religious  Tenets  of  the  New  Movement  .  .  .  .  172 
The  Spirit  of  the  new  movement  is  towards  liberal 
Christianity.  Religion  subordinated  to  the  pursuit  of 
health.  Christian  dogmas  rejected  or  minimized  or 
perverted.  The  modern  mind-movements  are  ingrafted 
on  historical  Christianity.     Mrs.  Eddy's  liberal  Chris- 


xiv  Contents 


tianity  not  undogmatic.  Christian  Science  and  ancient 
heresies.  Gnosticism,  Docetism.  Christian  Science  is 
anti-Trinitarian  in  belief.  The  Virgin-Birth  retained. 
The  Atonement  explained  away.  Christian  Science  re- 
jects all  sacraments.  Their  view  of  salvation,  of  heaven 
and  hell.  Intellectual  chaos  in  the  New  Thought  move- 
ment. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

V  Prayer  and  Christian  Science 182 

Is  Christian  Science  a  religion  of  prayer?  Who  was 
right,  the  Publican  or  the  Pharisee.'*  Sin  is  not  forgiven 
through  prayer.  Forgiveness  does  not  mean  a  dispensa- 
tion to  commit  sin.  Mrs.  Eddy  confounds  sin  and  evil 
habits.  Mrs.  Eddy's  objections  against  impetrative 
prayers.  Prayer  for  health  is  not  only  useless,  but 
harmful.  Mrs.  Eddy's  objections  against  audible 
prayers.  What  is  the  meaning  of  prayer  in  Chris- 
tian Science?  Prayer  is  desire.  Christian  Science 
Church  services.  Mrs.  Eddy's  spiritual  interpretation 
caricatures  the  Lord's  Prayer. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

*^  Ethics  of  the  Modern  Mind-Movements 192 

Pragmatism  of  the  modern  mind  movements.  To 
health  is  assigned  the  very  highest  rank.  Sin  classed 
with  physical  evils.  Sickness  deemed  essentially  evil. 
Is  Christian  Science  really  antinomian  ?  Antinomianism 
lurks  not  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  direct  teaching,  but  may  be 
fostered  by  her  principles.  Sin  is  punished  as  long  as 
it  lasts.  Mrs.  Eddy's  own  sense  of  sin.  Her  teaching 
concerning  marriage  not  always  flippant.  Her  objections 
to  material  generation.  Mrs.  Woodbury  and  the  Prince 
of  Peace.  The  moral  Code  of  Christian  Scientists  not 
an  exalted  one.  It  represents  a  refined  epicureanism. 
They  misinterpret  the  goodness  of  God.  Their  end  in 
view  lowers  their  moral  standard.  Difference  between 
Christian  Science  and  Christian  Asceticism.  Fillmore 
on  Thought-Causes.  To  ban  all  worry  is  to  stunt  the 
conscience.  Christian  Science  teaching  and  objective 
truth.  The  praise  of  Love.  Their  lives  belie  their  pro- 
fession. 


Contents  !s.v 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

PAGE 

The  New  Movement  vs.  Miracles 208 

The  supernatural  character  of  Christ's  miracles  de- 
nied. Quimby's  views.  Evans  on  Christ's  miracles. 
Mrs.  Eddy  and  the  miracles  of  Christ.  The  authors  of 
the  Emmanuel  movement.  The  denial  of  miracles  based 
on  false  philosophical  principles.  How  Christ  is  classed 
with  the  mind  healers.  Some  classes  of  diseases  ex- 
cluded by  some.  The  man  stricken  with  the  palsy. 
Necessity  of  faith.  Unity  with  God  another  requisite. 
This  explanation  widely  accepted.  Are  miracles  evidence 
for  the  truth  of  Christianity?  How  Hudson  reverses 
this  proof.  Christ's  humanity  exalted^  the  better  to  deny 
His  Divinity.  The  objections  to  miracles  mainly  phil- 
osophical. If  Christ  is  God^  we  must  expect  divine 
works.  The  preternatural  character  of  Christ's  works 
conceded  by  earlier  opponents  of  Christianity.  How 
the  methods  of  attack  have  varied  throughout  the  cen- 
turies. What  is  a  miracle  .^^  Various  ways  to  establish 
the  natural  or  supernatural  character  of  a  fact.  How 
miracles  are  differentiated  from  merely  mental  cures. 
A  biased  mind  cannot  admit  these  distinctions.  The 
appeal  to  unknown  laws.  Did  Christ  work  His  miracles 
as  credentials  to  His  Mission  and  Person.?  The  witness 
of  St.  John.  The  testimony  of  the  Synoptics.  The 
fallacy  of  the  critical  contentions.  Taken  as  recorded, 
Christ's  miracles  are  undoubtedly  supernatural.  Con- 
clusion. The  gift  of  miracles  in  the  Church.  The 
miracles  of  Lourdes. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Conclusion:  The  Latest  Events  in  Christian  Science  235 
Losses  and  gains.  Symptoms  of  original  fervor  and 
symptoms  of  revolt.  The  lawsuit  of  the  "next  friends.'* 
Retrospect:  the  year  1878.  Mrs.  Eddy's  desire  to  see 
her  son.  Mr.  Glover's  last  visit  to  his  mother.  Mrs. 
Eddy  removes  to  Boston.  Mrs.  Augusta  Stetson.  Her 
noonday  meetings.  Overflow  meetings  prohibited.  Plans 
for  a  new  church  building.  How  Boston  met  this  chal- 
lenge. Mrs.  Stetson  replies.  The  spontaneous  expres- 
sion of  gratitude.  Mrs.  Eddy  accepts  the  gift  and  cen- 
sures the  giver.     The  "Findings  and  Orders."     Mrs. 


xvi  Contents 

PAQB 

Stetson  is  disciplined.  The  New  York  revolt.  The 
Board  of  Directors  and  the  Christian  Science  Publish- 
ing Society.  Mr.  Rowlands  removed  by  the  Board. 
What  results  from  Mr.  Dittemore's  protest.  The  trus- 
tees sue  the  Board.  Outcrop  of  these  legal  contentions. 
Mrs.  Stetson's  grievances.     Conclusion. 

Bibliography 249 

Index 263 


CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE  AND 
THE  CATHOLIC  FAITH 


CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE  AND  THE 
CATHOLIC  FAITH 

CHAPTER  I 

MIND-CURES   OF   THE   PAST   AND    PRESENT 

From  the  world's  grayest  antiquity  down  to  our  own  days, 
man  made  use  of  mental  powers  in  the  healing  of  disease.  Men- 
tal healing  has  held,  and  is  holding  to-day,  a  well-nigh  world- 
wide sway  which  links  together,  in  a  common  practice  and 
belief,  reputably  the  highest  with  the  very  lowest  types  of 
humanity.  To  show  this  relationship  between  the  past  and  the 
present,  between  the  practices  of  civilized  nations  and  those  of 
savages,  we  must  perforce  extend  the  range  of  our  survey  and 
take  in  subjects  which  have  but  a  remote  connection  with  the 
modern  mind-movements. 

The  two  main  features  that  characterize  these  modern  heal- 
ing cults  are  (1)  their  preoccupation  about  health,  and  (2) 
the  religious  element  which  they  contain.  Religion  differen- 
tiates them  from  scientific  psychotherapeutics  (mind-healing) 
and  from  psycho-analysis  (healing  by  mind  analysis),  from 
which  the  religious  element  may  be  conspicuously  absent,  while 
preoccupation  about  health  distinguishes  them  from  religions 
whose  principal  aim  and  object  is  something  quite  different  from 
mere  bodily  well-being.  This  alliance  between  religion  and  medi- 
cine is  at  least  as  old  as  the  oldest  written  records  we  possess  of 
man.  If  Assyria  and  Babylonia  are  to  us  memories  with  a  hazy 
impression  of  unimaginable  antiquity,  we  must  learn  to  look 
upon  these  nations  as  young,  when  we  compare  them  with  the 
Accadians  or  Sumerians  who  had  occupied  their  country  before 
them.  Mind-healing  was  in  a  flourishing  condition  even  at  that 
early  date.     This  we  may  learn  from  the  Sumerian  language 

I 


2  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

which,  in  the  seventh  century  before  Christ,  had  become  a 
sacred  tongue,  unintelligible  to  the  masses,  yet  still  in  use  for 
religious  rites  and  incantations  in  the  temples.  The  Sumerian 
texts,  which  the  last  century  has  unearthed,  take  us  back  to 
the  days  when  Sumerian  was  as  living  a  tongue  as  English  is 
to  us,  and  prove  beyond  doubt  that  even  at  that  early  date  the 
very  closest  relation  existed  between  religion  and  healing:  the 
priests  were  the  physicians,  and  regaining  health  was,  partly 
at  least,  a  religious  exercise;  incantations  took  the  place  of 
suggestions,  and  the  expectation  of  health  from  the  spiritual 
world  advantageously  replaced  a  similar  expectation  in  our  own 
day  from  mind,  be  it  human  or  Divine. 

The  empires  of  the  Medes  and  the  Persians  either  shared 
these  usages  or  inherited  them  at  the  time  when  they  subdued  the 
earlier  kingdoms.  Under  their  scepter,  these  practices  ob- 
tained such  a  vogue  that  in  Roman  times,  occult  arts  became 
all  but  identified  with  the  Persian  priests,  or  Magi.  The  very 
word  Tnagic  is  derived  from  the  Persian  and  remains  in  our 
modern  tongues  as  a  historical  monument,  reminding  us  of  the 
beliefs  and  practices  of  those  superstitious  ages.^ 

But  the  countries  now  known  as  Mesopotamia  possessed  no 
monopoly  on  mental  healing.  Egypt  shared  with  them  the 
doubtful  honor  of  seeking  protection  and  relief  from  bodily  dis- 
ease by  religious  and  mental  means. 

"Diseases  and  pain,"  writes  Dr.  Renouf,  "being  caused 
by  the  intervention  of  some  god,  the  efficacy  of  the  medicines 
which  are  taken  is  chiefly  owing  to  the  prayers  or  incanta- 
tions which  are  said  over  them.  Isis  is  the  great  enchantress 
and  she  delivers  the  sick  and  suffering  from  the  gods  and  god- 
desses who  afflict  them,  even  as  she  delivered  her  son  Horus 
from  his  wounds  received  in  his  battle  with  Set."  ^ 

There  is  a  certain  charm,  as  well  as  intellectual  and  moral 
profit,  in  this  work  of  comparison  between  the  past  and  the 

*On  this  subject  may  be  consulted  Lenormant:  Chaldean  Magic,  Its 
Origin  and  Development  (London,  1877);  Maspero:  Life  in  Ancient  Egypt 
and  Assyria  (New  York,  1892) ;  Morris  Jastrow,  Jr.:  Aspects  of  Religious 
Belief  and  Practice  in  Babylonia  and  Assyria  (New  York,  1911), 

^Renouf:  The  Origin  and  Growth  of  Religion  as  illustrated  by  the  Re- 
ligion of  Ancient  Egypt,  Hibbert  Lectures  for  1879  (New  York,  1880),  p. 
220, 


Mind-Cures  of  the  Fast  and  Present  0 

present.  Especially  at  a  time  when,  from  every  popular  source 
of  information,  it  is  unceasingly  dinned  into  the  ears  of  the 
great  public  that  ours  is  an  age  of  unlimited  progress  and  im- 
measurably superior  to  any  that  preceded  it,  it  is  well  to 
learn  humbler  sentiments  by  a  backward  glance,  that  reveals, 
in  the  remotest  past,  if  not  absolutely  identical  institutions  and 
sentiments, — a  thing  that  no  one  could  reasonably  expect, — 
yet  withal  recognizable  parallels.  Not  only  the  modem  vogue 
of  mind-healing,  but  even  the  underlying  sentiments  on  which 
the  practice  is  grounded,  are  a  case  in  point.  Of  the  ancient 
Egyptians  Maspero  writes: 

"The  Egyptians  are  not  yet  resigned  to  think  that  illness 
and  death  are  natural  and  inevitable.  They  think  that  life, 
once  commenced,  should  be  indefinitely  prolonged ;  if  no  acci- 
dent intervened,  what  reason  could  there  be  for  its  ceasing? 
In  Egypt,  therefore,  man  does  not  die,  but  some  one  or  some- 
thing assassinates  him.  The  murderer  often  belongs  to  our 
world  and  can  be  easily  pointed  out :  another  man,  an  animal, 
an  inanimate  object,  a  stone  detached  from  the  mountain,  a 
tree  falling  upon  a  traveler  and  crushing  him.  Often,  though, 
it  belongs  to  the  invisible  world  and  only  reveals  itself  by  the 
malignity  of  its  attacks:  it  is  a  god,  a  spirit,  the  soul  of  a 
dead  man  that  has  cunningly  entered  a  living  person  or  that 
throws  itself  upon  him  with  irresistible  violence.  Once  in  pos- 
session of  the  body,  the  evil  influence  breaks  the  bones,  sucks 
out  the  marrow,  drinks  the  blood,  gnaws  the  intestines  and 
the  heart  and  devours  the  flesh.  The  invalid  perishes  ac- 
cording to  the  progress  of  this  destructive  work  and  death 
speedily  ensues  unless  the  evil  genius  can  be  driven  out  before 
it  has  committed  irreparable  damage."  "^ 

As  disease  was  something  mental,  so  also  was  its  treatment. 
Maspero  continues : 

"Whoever  treats  a  sick  person  has,  therefore,  two  equally 
important  duties  to  perform.  He  must  first  discover  the  na- 
ture of  the  spirit  in  possession  and,  if  necessary,  its  name, 
and  then  attack  it,  drive  it  out  or  even  destroy  it.  He  can 
only  succeed  by  powerful  magic,  so  he  must  be  an  expert  in 

*  Maspero:  Lift  in  Ancient  Egypt  avd  Assyria  (New  York,  1892),  p.  118. 


4  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

reciting  incantations,  and  skillful  in  making  amulets.  He 
must  then  use  medicine  to  contend  with  the  disorders  which 
the  presence  of  the  strange  being  has  produced  in  the  body ; 
this  is  done  by  a  finely  graduated  regime  and  various  reme- 
dies. The  cure-workers  are,  therefore,  divided  into  several 
categories.  Some  incline  towards  sorcery  and  have  faith  in 
formulas  and  talismen  only;  they  think  they  have  done 
enough  if  they  have  driven  out  the  spirit.  Others  extol  the 
use  of  drugs.  .  ,  .  The  best  doctors  carefully  avoid  binding 
themselves  to  either  method;  they  carefully  distinguish  be- 
tween those  cases  in  which  magic  is  sovereign  and  those  in 
which  natural  methods  suffice,  whilst  their  treatment  is  a  mix- 
ture of  remedies  and  exorcisms  which  vary  from  patient  to 
patient."  ^ 

If  now  we  pass  over  from  Africa  to  Europe  we  meet  with 
similar  conditions  among  the  Greeks.  Famous  in  the  annals  of 
medicine  is  the  Greek  god  of  the  healing  art,  ^sculapius.  If 
Egypt  had  its  Serapiums  or  temples  dedicated  to  the  god 
Serapis,  where  wonderful  cures  are  said  to  have  taken  place, 
Greece  numbered  among  its  temples  many  famous  sanctuaries 
dedicated  to  iEsculapius,  and,  preeminent  among  them,  those 
of  Epidauros  in  Argolis,  Greece,  and  of  JEgae  in  Cilicia,  Asia 
Minor,  where  Apollonius  of  Tyana  is  credited  with  having  per- 
formed some  wonderful  cures. ^  The  sick  would  resort  to  these 
temples,  sleep  there  one  or  several  nights,  and  not  unfrequently 
recover  their  health,  as  it  was  believed,  through  remedies  indi- 
dated  in  their  dreams  by  the  god  of  health.  No  one  nowadays 
doubts  that  the  trustful  expectation  which  brought  the  pa- 
tients to  the  temples — an  attitude  which  we  now  would  call 
auto-suggestion — was  a  most  important  factor  in  their  even- 
tual recovery. 

The  Roman  Empire,  too,  proved  a  very  fertile  field  for 
the  spread  of  these  beliefs  and  practices.     From  everywhere 

*Maspero:  op.  cit.,  p.  119.  Cf.  George  Rawlinson:  History  of  Ancient 
Egypt  (New  York,  1886),  Vol.  II,  p.  269:  "Asia  poured  the  fetid  stream  of 
her  manifold  superstitions  into  Africa,  and  to  the  old  theology  was  added  a 
wild  and  weird  demonology  which  proved  wonderfully  attractive  to  the  now 
degenerated  Egyptians." 

*Cf.  Farnell,  L.  R.:  Greek  Hero  Cults  and  Ideas  of  Immortality  (Lon- 
don, 1921). 


Mmd-Cures  of  the  Past  and  Present  5 

superstition  flocked  to  Rome,  and  from  Rome,  in  turn,  it 
radiated  in  all  directions.  But  a  check  now  begins  to  make  it- 
self felt  against  all  brands  of  superstition.  About  this  time  a 
fact  penetrates  into  history,  small  in  appearance  but  mighty 
in  its  future  possibilities.  Boldly  it  confronts  ancient  civili- 
zation, its  corruptions  and  superstitions,  with  a  new  order  in 
which,  too,  cures  play  a  prominent  part.  Christianity,  slowly 
but  surely,  is  leavening  the  ancient  mind  with  new  ideas ;  it  sets 
its  miracles  against  the  claims  and  achievements  of  the  past, 
and  it  conquers. 

To  group  together  Christian  miracles  and  Pagan  marvels 
with  modern  mental  cures  is  now  looked  upon  as  scientific,  as 
though  everything  extraordinary  must  necessarily  flow  from 
the  same  source.  At  the  time,  however,  when  the  two  civiliza- 
tions, Pagan  and  Christian,  flourished  side  by  side,  people  were 
not  caught  by  superficial  resemblances  that  might  exist  between 
the  works  of  God  and  the  works  of  charlatans.  A  Simon  Magus 
saw  at  a  glance  the  differences  between  his  trade  and  that  of 
the  preachers  of  the  Gospel.  When,  later,  a  Celsus  attempted 
to  do  what  now  modern  Christians  do  without  scruple,  and,  in 
his  attacks  on  Christianity,  sought  to  identify  the  miracles  of 
Christ  with  the  performances  of  Pagan  jugglers,  he  found  an 
Origen  who  brilliantly  refuted  the  fallacies  of  his  Pagan  an- 
tagonist.^ While  in  the  miracles  of  their  Lord  the  Christians 
found  solid  ground  for  their  faith,  they  either  saw  in  Pagan 
marvels  nothing  else  but  feats  of  skill  or  ascribed  them  to  the 
power  of  evil  spirits.^     Works  must  be  weighed  in  the  scales 

*  Origen:  Against  Celsus,  Book  I,  chap.  6,  in  Ante-Nicene  Fathers,  Vol. 
IV,  p.  399:  "He  (Celsus)  next  proceeds  to  bring  a  charge  against  the  Savior 
Himself,  alleging  that  it  was  by  means  of  sorcery  that  He  was  able  to 
accomplish  the  wonders  which  He  performed."  Ibid.,  p.  413  (chap.  38). 
"He  desires  to  throw  discredit  on  them  as  being  done  by  the  help  of  magic 
and  not  by  divine  power."  Ibid.,  p.  427  (chap.  68) :  "He  immediately  com- 
pares them  to  the  tricks  of  jugglers  who  profess  to  do  more  wonderful 
things  and  to  the  feats  performed  by  those  who  have  been  taught  by  Egyp- 
tians." The  Greek  original  is  to  be  found  in  Migne's  Patrologia  Oraeca, 
Vol.  XI.  The  whole  treatment  of  this  subject  by  Origen  is  well  worth 
perusing. 

^Tertullian:  Apologeticus  adversus  Oentes,  chap.  22,  says  in  relation  to 
this:  "They  (the  evil  spirits)  first  harm,  then  prescribe  astonishing  rem- 
edies, then  cease  to  harm  and  are  believed  to  have  cured.  Laedunt  enim 
primo,  dehinc  remedia  praecipiunt  ad  miracula  nova,  sive  contraria,  post 
quae  desinunt  laedere,  et  curasse  creduntur." 


6  Christian  Science  and  tfie  Catholic  Faith 

of  a  dispassionate  judgment;  such  superficial  resemblances  as 
may  be  established  between  modern  mind-cures  and  those  of 
Christ  do  not,  on  that  account,  place  them  in  the  same  rank. 

The  magical  practices  of  the  Pagan  world  never  disap- 
peared entirely.  The  Church  inveighed  against  them;  her 
ministers  warned  the  faithful  against  this  danger  to  their  faith ; 
even  in  such  intimate  matters  as  that  of  bodily  health,  we 
find  St.  Augustine  giving  detailed  directions  to  the  Christians ; 
the  State  undertook  to  suppress  the  Pagan  cults,  but  all  in 
vain.  When  the  temples  were  closed  in  the  cities,  the  Pagan 
priests  and  sorcerers  found  an  asylum  in  remote  country  places 
and  continued  their  practices. -"^  When  Theodosius  II  in  the 
first  half  of  the  fifth  century  undertook  to  clear  up  also  the 
country  places,  by  destroying  the  temples  and  erecting  the 
Cross  on  their  location,^  the  magical  practices  continued  to 
flourish  in  secret,  adopting  gradually  certain  features  borrowed 
from  Christianity,  but,  on  the  whole,  remaining  essentially 
Pagan.^ 

Among  the  causes  that  made  people  resort  to  superstitious 
practices,  the  desire  to  secure,  protect,  and  safeguard  health 
must  have  held  a  prominent  place.  It  can  hardly  be  doubted 
that  self-deception  and  self-suggestion  played  an  important 
part  in  rendering  occult  means  efficacious  and  in  strengthening 
by  this  very  success  the  ancient  superstitious  beliefs.  A  good 
many  factors  contributed  to  widen  this  sway  of  superstition. 
There  is  the  question  of  heredity  and  tribal  solidarity.  Clusters 
of  young  and  impulsive  nations,  not  yet  emerged  out  of  barbar- 
ism, about  this  time  came  to  be  gathered  into  the  folds  of  the 
Church,  and,  among  them,  many  a  deep-seated,  long-cherished 
superstition  continued  to  flourish  despite  the  Church.    It  might 

^  These  districts  were  called  pagi;  hence  about  this  time  the  unbelievers 
came  to  be  called  pagani  or  Pagans. 

'Corpus  Juris  Civilis,  Paris,  1628,  lib.  25,  p.  331:  "Cunctaque  eorum  fana, 
templa,  delubra,  si  quae  etiam  nunc  restant  Integra,  praecepto  magistra- 
tuum  destrui,  coUocationeque  venerandae  religionis  Christianae  signi  expiari 
praecipimus." 

'  Cf.  Maury:  La  Magie  et  I'Astrologie  dans  V Antiquity  et  au  Moyen  Age 
(Paris,  1864),  pp.  145  ff.  Leuba,  in  American  Anthropologist,  Vol.  XIV 
(1912),  pp.  333  ff.,  "The  Varieties,  Classification  and  Origin  of  Magic." 
Saintyves:  La  Force  Magique  (Paris,  1914).  Cf.  especially  St.  Augustine: 
De  Doctrina  Christiana,  lib.  I.,  cap.  23,  29. 


Mmd-Cures  of  the  Past  and  Present  7 

change  its  garment  for  something  more  acceptable  to  Christian 
minds,  but  this  outward  covering  could  not  conceal  its  Pagan 
origin.  Again,  there  is  the  question  of  ignorance.  Not  that 
fabulous  absolute  darkness  which,  in  certain  quarters,  has 
earned  for  this  period  the  unenviable  name  of  Dark  Ages,  but 
that  relative  ignorance  of  the  laws  of  nature,  which  made  every 
disease  a  mysterious  visitation  either  from  on  high  or  from 
below.  It  were  a  vain  dream  to  expect  that  the  learned  would 
rise  so  high  above  the  common  beliefs  and  fears  and  hopes  of 
their  times  as  to  remain  uninfluenced  by  all  their  cruder  and 
more  immature  conceptions.  A  universal  Cartesian  doubt  was 
unknown  to  them.  They  were  men  of  their  own  times  and  of 
their  own  stock.  Some  few  might  rise  head  and  shoulders  above 
their  fellows:  an  Albert  the  Great  or  Roger  Bacon  might  ap- 
pear who  would  astonish  future  ages  even  more  than  their  con- 
temporaries ;  ^  yet  they  remain,  in  some  respects,  brilliant  ex- 
ceptions, and  in  others,  children  of  their  own  age.^ 

There  is  a  third  cause  which  contributed  perhaps  as  much  as 
the  other  two  combined,  if  not  more,  to  perpetuate  this  state  of 
affairs.  It  was  the  learned  arrogance  of  the  pretended  scholars 
of  the  day,  of  the  physician  who  spoke  in  high-sounding  terms 
and  with  bold  assurance,  and  of  the  philosopher  who  prided 
himself  on  knowing  all  the  secrets  of  the  universe.  A  man  like 
Ibn  Sina,  better  known  to  the  Western  World  as  Avicenna,  is 
a  typical  representative  of  this  class  of  men.^  Considering  the 
extent  of  the  powers  which,  in  his  work  on  the  soul,  he  ascribes 

*  Albert  the  Great  (c.  1206-1280),  according  to  Dr.  Kennedy,  "expressed 
contempt  for  everything  that  savored  of  enchantment  or  the  art  of  magic. 
'Non  approbo  dictum  Avicennae  et  Algazel  de  fascinatione  quia  credo  quod 
non  nocet  fascinatio,  nee  nocere  potest  ars  magica,  nee  facit  aliquid  ex  his 
quae  timentur  de  talibus.' "    Cf.  Catholic  Encyclopedia,  Vol.  I,  p.  265. 

Roger  Bacon  (1214-1291),  the  justly  celebrated  Franciscan  friar,  wrote 
among  others  a  treatise  on  the  nothingness  of  magic  "De  Nullitate  Magiae." 
Cf.  Catholic  Encyclopedia,  Vol.  XIII,  p.  112.  The  article  on  Roger  Bacon 
is  written  by  the  Franciscan,  Theophilus  Witzel. 

*  Even  St.  Thomas  Aquinas  (1225-1274)  admitted  an  indirect  influence 
of  the  heavenly  bodies  on  the  human  character  (Summa  Theologia,  Pars.  I, 
q.  95,  art.  5)  and  believed  in  the  reality  of  the  evil  eye  that  could  physically 
harm,  especially  tender  children  {ibid.,  q.  117,  art.  3,  ad  2). 

^Avicenna  (980-1037),  an  Arabian  philosopher  and  physician  exercised 
great  influence  over  the  Christian  scholars.  Consult  Catholic  Encyclopedia, 
Vol.  II,  p.  157,  article  by  Bishop  William  Turner.  Also  Summa  Theologia, 
loc.  cit.,  and  Delrio,  Disquisitionum  Maglcarum,  libri  sex  (Mainz,  1624),  lib. 
I,  pp.  16  fF. 


8  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

to  the  perfect  mind,  he  might  well  be  styled  Mrs.  Eddy's  prede- 
cessor and  master.  Among  these  powers  may  be  mentioned 
that  of  fascination,  that  of  healing  at  a  distance,  that  of  dis- 
placing objects,  and  of  producing  lightning  and  rain  by  sheer 
power  of  will.  The  reasons  Avicenna  assigns  for  these  beliefs 
are  not  unworthy  of  those  of  the  modern  mind-healers.  He 
taught  that  matter,  by  nature,  obeys  spiritual  substances 
rather  than  other  agents,  and,  consequently,  that  a  strong 
imagination  compels  material  bodies  to  conform.  His  followers, 
speak  of  powerful  rays  that  issue  from  the  body  of  those  whom 
nature  has  endowed  with  healing  powers,  and  of  bodily  humors 
which  the  soul  can  propel  far  beyond  the  narrow  limits  of 
the  body. 

Side  by  side  with  magical  practices  there  existed  all  through 
the  Middle  Ages  a  class  of  mind-cures, — if  the  appellation  may 
be  permitted  in  this  case, — which  had  nothing  to  do  with  occult 
practices,  but  relied  solely  on  the  protection,  intercession  and 
help  of  God,  the  angels,  and  the  saints.  Even  the  most  staunch 
believer  in  the  efficacy  of  prayer  for  man's  bodily,  as  well  as 
spiritual,  welfare  will  not  deny,  that,  over  and  above  a  direct 
help  from  heaven,  there  may  exist  in  prayer  a  natural  virtue, 
which  will  benefit  sick  persons  who  put  their  heart  and  soul 
into  this  exercise.  On  its  natural  side  even  prayer  may  be 
open  to  superstitious  admixtures,  from  which  it  has  always 
been  the  endeavor  of  the  Church  to  free  it.  In  vain  did  the 
celebrated  Jesuit  priest  Delrio,  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  plead  against  such  an  inroad  of  questionable  beliefs 
and  practices.  He  was  answered  by  a  reference  to  the  fact 
of  their  success. -"^  Soldiers  healed  their  wounds  by  what  was 
styled  St.  Anselm's  art ;  in  Spain  a  class  of  healers  practiced 
with  success  under  the  name  of  "saludadores" ;  in  Italy  similar 
professional  healers  went  by  the  name  of  "Gentiles  S.  Cath- 
arinae"  or  "Gentiles  S.  Pauli";  in  Belgium  children  bom  on 

*  Delrio:  op.  cit.,  p.  24;  "Obiiciuntur  varia  curationum  genera  mire  fre- 
quentia."  Cf.  pp.  24-27.  Also  Buckley:  Faith-Healing,  Christian  Science 
and  Kindred  Phenomena  (New  York,  1892),  especially  pp.  169-238.  Here 
we  might  mention  the  widespread  belief  in  England  and  France  that  their 
kings  could  cure  certain  diseases,  called  on  that  account  king's  evil,  by  their 
touch  or  by  blessing  rings  which  the  patient  had  to  wear. 


Mmd-Cures  of  the  Fast  and  Present  9 

Good  Friday  were,  by  that  very  fact,  believed  to  be  endowed 
with  the  gift  of  healing. 

On  passing  from  the  civilized  to  the  uncivilized  nations  to 
the  so-called  primitive  peoples  who,  owing  to  the  primitive  or 
low  state  of  their  civilization,  find  themselves  on  the  lowest 
rung  of  human  culture,  we  find  under  other  forms  the  same 
efforts  at  mental  healing,  with  the  same  general  belief  in  the 
superiority  of  the  spiritual  over  the  material.  For  what  is 
fetishism  but  a  form  of  mental  culture  which,  based  on  super- 
stition, expects  protection,  preservation,  defense,  health,  fe- 
cundity, power,  riches,  and  happiness  through  the  instrumental- 
ity of  the  horn  or  tooth  of  an  animal,  a  shell,  a  stone,  or  what- 
ever other  fetish  the  savage  may  believe  in?  ^  Here  we  have 
another  important  link  in  the  chain  of  evidence  for  the  uni- 
versality of  mental  cures. 

We  can  gather  from  these  considerations  that  Christian 
Science  does  not  stand  in  the  world  as  an  isolated  event;  its 
pretense  to  the  discovery  of  a  new  principle  of  cure  is  not  borne 
out  by  the  facts  of  history.  Its  claim  to  be  the  result  of  a  new 
revelation  has  against  it,  as  a  prima  facie  objection,  an  unin- 
terrupted series  of  facts  that  bear  witness  to  mental  healing 
throughout  all  ages.  True,  there  is  no  identity,  properly  so- 
called  ;  yet  there  is  enough  similarity  to  justify  its  classification 
with  these  its  antecedents.  In  the  next  chapter  we  shall  trace 
more  in  detail  its  historical  rise  from  its  immediate  forbear, 
mesmerism. 

*Cf.  Le  Roy,  Mgr.  A.:    La  Religion  des  Primitifs   (Paris,  1911),  pp. 
970  ff.;  also  A.  R6ville:  La  Religion  des  Peuples  non  civilis4s,  Vol.  I,  p.  81. 


CHAPTER    II 


MODERN    MIND-MOVEMENTS 


During  the  eighteenth  century  the  belief  in  the  prevalence 
of  witchcraft  gradually  made  way  for  a  more  natural  and 
cheerful  outlook  on  life.^  Men  ceased  to  dread  the  existence 
everywhere  of  malign  influences,  but  continued  strongly  to  be- 
lieve in  abnormal  curative  powers.  Even  today  the  names  of 
Paracelsus  and  Mesmer,  to  mention  only  a  few  among  many, 
are  not  unknown.^  While  men  of  lesser  note  are  forgotten, 
the  fame  of  these  is  still  glimmering  sufficiently  to  show  the 
thread  of  historic  continuity  that  binds  the  present  to  the  past, 
Mesmer  is  commonly  credited  with  being  the  father  of  the 
modem  mind-movements;  a  hasty  sketch  of  his  work  and  en- 
vironment must,  therefore,  find  a  place  here. 

In  the  second  half  of  the  eighteenth  century  an  Austrian 
priest,  Gassner  by  name,  won  great  fame  through  his  remark- 

*  The  executions  for  witchcraft  in  Salem,  Mass.,  took  place  from  July  19 
to  September  22,  1692.  In  1736  the  English  statute  against  witchcraft  was 
repealed,  although  eight  years  later  (1728)  Rhode  Island  reenacted  its  laws 
against  witchcraft.  The  last  trial  for  witchcraft  in  Germany  was  in  1749  at 
Wiirzburg.  In  Switzerland, ,  in  the  Protestant  canton  Glarus,  a  girl  was  exe- 
cuted on  this  score  as  late  as  1783,  and  in  Southwestern  Russia  a  man  was 
burned  as  a  wizard  in  1827.  Mrs.  Eddy  revived  substantially  the  belief  in 
black  magic  under  the  new  names  of  mental  malpractice  or  malicious  ani- 
mal magnetism.  On  this  subject  consult  an  article  by  Father  Thurston, 
S.  J.,  in  the  Catholic  Encyclopedia,  Vol.  XV,  p.  674.  Also  Buckley:  op.  cit., 
pp.  205  fF. 

'Paracelsus  (c.  1493-1541)  is  the  reputed  founder  of  the  magnetic  sys- 
tem of  healing.  After  him  Sir  Kenelm  Digby  (1603-1665)  achieved  fame 
through  his  work  On  the  Cure  of  Wounds  by  the  Powder  of  Sympathy 
(London,  1658).  About  the  same  time  Goclenius,  a  professor  of  medicine  in 
Marburg  published  a  work  entitled  De  Unguento  Armario  (The  Weapon 
Salve).  To  this  the  Jesuit  John  Robert,  who  died  in  1651,  replied  with  his 
Short  Anatomy  of  Goclenius'  Treatise  on  the  Magnetic  Cure  of  Wounds.  A 
controversy  resulted  in  which  Van  Helmont,  one  of  the  most  famous  physi- 
cians and  chemists  of  his  day,  took  part.  For  curious  medical  superstitions 
that  could  have  none  but  mental  effectiveness  consult  Podmore,  Mesmerism 
and  Christian  Science  (Philadelphia,  1909). 

10 


Modern  Mind-Movements  11 

able  cures.  Gassner,  like  so  many  others  that  come  to  the 
world  with  a  message  of  relief,  had  earlier  in  his  life  passed 
through  a  long  siege  of  sickness,  during  which  he  came  to  form 
peculiar  views  on  the  nature  of  many  diseases.  Convinced 
that  these  infirmities  were  the  result,  not  of  natural  agencies, 
but  of  evil  spirits,  he  resolved  to  cure  them  by  means  of  the 
exorcisms  and  prayers  of  the  Church.  He  is  commonly  con- 
sidered to  be  the  immediate  predecessor  of  Mesmer.  Of  these 
two  men  and  their  mutual  relations,  Podmore  says : 

"To  the  most  recent  of  these  healers,  the  Suabian  priest 
J.  J.  Gassner,  Mesmer  probably  owed  many  features  of  his 
practice.  The  five  or  six  years  ending  with  1777 — ^when  he 
was  forced,  by  ecclesiastical  interdict  and  Imperial  decree,  to 
quit  Ratisbon — were  those  in  which  Gassner  reached  the 
zenith  of  his  fame.  During  these  years  he  resided  chiefly  at 
Ratisbon;  but  he  traveled  about  and  visited  many  towns  in 
Bavaria,  healing  by  his  word  and  touch.  Mesmer  .  .  .  prior 
to  his  arrival  in  Paris  in  1778  had  for  some  years  journeyed 
about  Europe,  amongst  other  countries  in  Suabia  and  Ba- 
varia. If  he  did  not  actually  meet  Gassner — and  it  is  stated 
that  he  did — he  must  have  heard  of  his  fame,  and  been  con- 
versant with  his  methods  of  operation.  A  noticeable  point 
in  Gassner's  treatment  was,  that,  as  a  preliminary  to  under- 
taking a  cure,  he  would  cause  to  be  reproduced  in  the  patient 
the  pains  and  other  symptoms  of  the  disease.  The  exorcism 
by  which  he  sought  to  expel  the  demon  (to  whose  presence  in 
the  patient  he  attributed  the  disease)  generally  produced 
strong  convulsions ;  and  the  cure  commenced  only  when  they 
were  calmed.  Again,  Gassner  constantly  chased  the  pain 
from  one  part  of  the  body  to  another,  finally  chasing  it  out, 
by  his  command,  from  the  fingers  or  toes.  AH  these  features 
are  characteristic  of  Mesmer's  early  treatment,  though,  as 
we  shall  see,  they  soon  disappeared  in  the  practice  of  his  suc- 
cessors," ^ 

*  Podmore:  Mesmerism  and  Christian  Science  (Philadelphia,  1909),  p.  27. 
Cf.  Francis  J.  Schaeffer,  in  Catholic  Encyclopedia,  art.  "Gassner."  "Official 
investigations  were  made  by  the  ecclesiastical  authorities  and  all  were  favor- 
able to  Gassner  except  that  they  recommended  more  privacy  and  de- 
corum. .  .  .  He  never  departed  from  the  Church's  teaching  or  instructions 
concerning  exorcism,  and  always  disclaimed  the  name  of  wonder-worker. 
He  was  an  exemplary  priest,  full  of  faith  and  zeal,  and  altogether  unselfish 
in  his  works  of  mercy." 


12  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

^  Francis  Anthony  Mesmer  (c.  1734-1815)  is  the  real 
founder  of  the  modern  mind-movements.  He  is  the  link  be- 
tween the  old  and  the  new,  between  medieval  magic  and  modern 
mind-healing.  His  doctoral  dissertation,  entitled  On  the  In- 
■fluence  of  the  Planets  on  the  Hummi  Body,  fitly  illustrates  the 
medieval  bend  of  his  mind.  Only  a  century  earlier,  he  might 
have  been  a  famous  astrologer ;  but  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  with  the  world  boasting  of  its  enlightenment  and 
scientific  proficiency,  he  quite  naturally  exchanged  the  some- 
what stale  explanation  of  stellar  influence  for  the  newer,  and 
perhaps  truer,  concept  of  human  magnetism. 

Mesmer  was  a  Viennese  physician ;  but  in  reality  his  history 
begins  with  his  arrival  at  Paris,  in  February,  1778.  It  is  there 
that  he  achieved  his  success;  thence  his  disciples  departed,  to 
become  in  other  lands  the  enthusiastic  apostles  of  his  dis- 
coveries; there  he  established  his  famous  "baquet,"  the  sup- 
posedly magnetized  vat,  which  became  the  instrument  of  his 
success. 

"In  a  room  dimly  lighted  and  hung  with  mirrors,  his  pa- 
tients were  seated  around  a  circular  vat  of  considerable  size, 
covered  with  a  lid  and  containing  various  chemicals.  A  long 
cord  connected  the  patients  with  one  another,  while  in  the 
lid  of  the  tub  were  several  holes,  through  each  of  which 
passed  an  iron  rod  bent  in  such  a  way  that  its  points  could  be 
applied  to  any  part  of  a  patient's  body.  The  patients  were 
requested  not  to  speak,  the  only  sounds  in  the  room  being 
strains  of  soft  music.  When  expectancy  was  at  its  flood, 
Mesmer  would  enter,  clad  in  the  robe  of  a  magician  and  car- 
rying an  iron  wand.  At  one  patient  he  would  gaze  intently, 
another  he  would  stroke  gently  with  his  wand.  Soon  some 
would  burst  into  laughter,  others  into  tears,  while  still  others 
would  fall  into  convulsions,  finally  passing  into  a  lethargic 
state,  out  of  which  it  is  claimed  they  emerged  cured  or  on 
the  high  road  to  a  cure."  '^ 

I '  Mesmer's  philosophical  views  were  a  peculiar  amalgamation 

of  science  and  superstition,  of  shrewd  calculations  and  plain 

guesswork.     There  existed — so  he  taught — a  universal  fluid, 

*  Bruce:    The  Riddle  of  Personality  (New  York,  1917),  p.  17.    Cf.  Pod- 
more,  op.  cit.,  t^.  Q^. 


Modern  Mind-Movements  13 

subject  to  unknown  mechanical  laws,  but  akin  to  magnetism 
and  to  the  electric  current,  and  binding  together  in  a  common 
cause  the  celestial,  terrestrial,  and  living  bodies.  The  human 
body,  in  particular,  did  not  remain  outside  its  sphere  of  in- 
fluence, but  was  in  itself  a  living  magnet,  endowed  with  negative 
and  positive  poles,  and  subject,  like  other  magnets,  to  influences 
both  celestial  and  terrestrial.  Hence  the  name  of  animal  mag- 
netism. This  mysterious  entity,  like  electricity,  was  scarcely 
subject  to  the  restrictions  of  space;  mirrors  reflected  and  in- 
creased it,  sound  spread  and  amplified  it.  It  was  especially 
efficacious  in  nervous  diseases,  but  even  in  other  cases  it  was 
highly  beneficial.  If  any  magnetic  treatment  proved  successful, 
it  was  entirely  due  to  the  presence,  in  man,  of  this  animal 
magnetism. 

Mesmer's  successes  won  for  him  the  active  support  of 
Charles  Deslon,  the  Regent  of  the  faculty  of  Medicine  in  Paris 
University  and  physician  to  the  Comte  d'Artois.  Another 
distinguished  disciple  was  the  Marquis  de  Puysegur  who  became 
the  founder  of  the  "Harmonie,"  one  of  the  most  celebrated  mag- 
netic societies.  Having  paid  his  hundred  "louis  d'or"  to  learn 
Mesmer's  secret,  he  returned  to  his  patrimony  to  practice  the 
new  art  at  his  leisure.  His  experiments  brought  to  light  a 
number  of  curious  facts  which  are  now  well  known  to  every 
hypnotist,  such  as  somnambulism,  clairvoyance,  and  telepathy. 
He  abandoned  Mesmer's  "baquet"  and  obtained  like  successes 
by  means  of  a  "magnetized"  tree.  "The  tree,"  he  wrote  to  his 
brother,  "is  the  best  baquet  possible ;  every  leaf  radiates  health 
and  all  who  come  experience  its  salutary  influence."  ^ 

In  the  course  of  time  Puysegur  profoundly  modified  Mes- 
mer's theory  of  a  universal  magnetic  fluid.  In  an  address  de- 
livered at  Strassburg  in  1785  he  assured  his  audience  that 
"the  whole  secret  of  animal  magnetism  lay  in  these  two  words : 
'Croi/ez  et  veuUlez,'  believe  and  will."  "Animal  magnetism,"  he 
declared,  "does  not  consist  in  the  action  of  one  body  upon  an- 
other, but  in  the  action  of  the  thought  upon  the  vital  principles 
of  the  body."  2 

*Cf.  Podmore:  op.  cit.,  pp.  63,  76-77. 

'  Cf .   Surbled,   in   Catholic  Encyclopedia,  Vol.   VII,  pp.   605  flP.,  article 
"Hypnotism." 


14  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

These  principles  received  a  more  systematic  and  complete 
development  from  the  Indo-Portuguese  priest  Faria,  of  whom 
Dr.  Surbled  writes  in  the  Catholic  Encyclopedia: 

"The  abbe  Faria  was  the  first  to  effect  a  breach  in  the 
theory  of  the  magnetic  fluid,  to  place  in  relief  the  importance 
of  suggestion  and  to  demonstrate  the  existence  of  auto-sug- 
gestion ;  he  also  established  the  truth,  that  the  nervous  sleep 
__  belongs  only  to  the  natural  order.  From  his  earliest  magne- 
tizing seances  in  1814  he  boldly  developed  his  doctrine.  Noth- 
ping  comes  from  the  magnetizer,-every thing  comes  from  the 

//—subject  and  takes  place  in  his  imagination.  Magnetism  is 
only  a  form  of  sleep.  Although  of  the  moral  order,  the  mag- 
netic action  is  often  aided  by  physical  or  rather  by  physio- 

^^  logical  means :  fixedness  of  look  and  cerebral  fatigue.  Here- 
in the  abbe  Faria  showed  himself  a  true  pioneer,  too  little 
appreciated  by  his  contemporaries,  and  even  by  posterity. 
He  was  the  creator  of  hypnotism ;  most  of  the  pretended  dis- 
coveries of  the  scientist  of  today  are  really  his.  We  need  not 
recall  here  that  he  practiced  suggestion  in  the  waking  state 
and  post-hypnotic  suggestion."  ^ 

After  the  storms  of  the  French  Revolution  had  somewhat 
subsided,  interest  in  animal  magnetism  was  revived.  In  Russia 
an  imperial  commission  had  reported  in  its  favor  as  early  as 
1815.  In  18S1  the  Academy  of  Berlin  proposed  a  prize  for 
the  best  essay  on  this  subject.  England  was  overrun  by  a 
band  of  traveling  mesmerists.  In  1831  a  commission  of  the 
French  Academie  des  Sciences  declared  this  mysterious  mag- 
netic power  of  importance  for  physiology  and  therapeutics.^ 
The  physician  Alexandre  Bertrand,  who  in  his  youth  had  come 
under  Faria's  influence,  now  welded  together  Mesmer's  theories 
with  those  of  Faria,  by  granting  a  large  influence  to  the  imagi- 
nation, without,  on  the  other  hand,  denying  the  existence  of  a 
magnetic  fluid.^ 

*  Surbled,  in  Catholic  Encyclopedia,  Vol.  VII,  p.  604-605;  Janet,  Pierre: 
Les  medications  psychologiques,  Vol.  I,  pp.  143  ff. 

"  In  Mesmer's  time  a  similar  commission,  of  which  Benj  amin  Franklin 
and  Lavoisier  were  members,  had  pronounced  against  the  reality  of  Mes- 
mer's magnetic  fluid  and  against  attributing  any  scientific  value  to  his- 
theories.  On  this  later  occasion  the  Academy  paid  no  attention  to  the 
recommendations  of  the  commission,  and  its  report  remained  unprinted. 

•  Cf .  Surbled :  op.  cit.,  p.  605.  Concerning  Bertrand's  views  Dr.  Surbled 
l-emarks:   "We  are  inclined  to  think  that  his  view  of  the  matter  was  a  Just 


I 


Modern  Mmd-Movements  15 

It  does  not  fall  within  the  scope  of  this  inquiry  to  trace 
in  detail  the  vicissitudes  of  mesmerism.  Only  a  bare  mention 
can  be  accorded  to  a  man  whose  pioneer  work  in  these  lines 
has  won  for  him  universal  recognition.  Dr.  Braid,  the  Man- 
chester surgeon,  more  open-minded  than  most  of  his  colleagues, 
satisfied  himself  of  the  reality  of  the  mesmeric  phenomena,  and 
as  a  result  of  his  own  researches  embraced  and  developed  the 
views  of  Faria  and  Bertrand.  He  insisted  that  mental  cures 
were  the  work  of  the  patient's  imagination  under  the  directing 
influence  of  a  hypnotic  suggestion.^ 

Meanwhile  mesmerism  has  crossed  the  Atlantic.  There  is 
a  magnetic  society  in  New  Orleans  as  early  as  1833.  Three 
years  later  the  French  lecturer  Charles  Poyen  tours  the  New 
England  states  in  behalf  of  mesmerism  and  arouses  general 
interest  either  in  its  favor  or  against  it.  The  subject  is  taken 
up  by  a  Dr.  Collyer  who,  in  1838,  lectures  in  Belfast,  Maine, 
the  home  of  the  future  "Dr."  Quimby.  Here  in  America,  mes- 
merism splits  into  its  component  parts,  or  rather,  develops 
into  hypnotism,  spiritism,  and  mental  healing  properly  so^ 
called.^     Only  the  latter  phase  concerns  us. 

The  man  who  became  instrumental  in  this  transformation 
of  mesmerism  into  the  modern  mind-movements,  was  one  of 
humble  origin,  an  eccentric,  who  was  always  ready  to  champion 
new  ideas,  and  always  willing  to  question  existing  beliefs  and 
institutions.  A  kind-hearted  man,  nevertheless,  he  was,  and 
his  great  success  was  not  a  little  due  to  his  winning  ways,  to 
his    sympathetic    personality.^      Phineas    Parkhurst    Quimby 

one,  and  apt  to  lead  up  to  the  definite  solution."  On  the  other  hand,  the 
praises  which  Podmore  {op.  cit.,  p.  92)  withholds  from  Faria  to  bestow  them 
on  Bertrand  are  really  due  the  former.  Faria's  views,  however,  are  not 
original  with  him,  but  represent  in  a  recognizable  manner  the  teaching  of 
the  Scholastics,  and  of  Pope  Benedict  XIV. 

^  Dr.  Braid  substituted  the  name  of  neurp-hypnotism,  later  on  simplified 
into  hypnotism,  for  the  older  names  of  animal  magnetism  and  mesmerism. 

'Spiritism  is  commonly  dated  from  the  mysterious  so-called  Hydesville 
or  Rochester  rappings  which  occurred  in  1848.  Simultaneously  with  it,  the 
mind-cure  movements  developed. 

'Consult  Dresser,  Horatio  W.:  A  History  of  the  New  Thought  Move- 
ment (New  York,  1919)  ;  idem,  The  Spirit  of  the  New  Thought  (New  York, 
1917);  idem,  Handbook  of  the  New  Thought  (New  York,  1917).  Milmine, 
Life  of  Mary  Baker  O.  Eddy  and  History  of  Christian  Science  first  pub- 
lished serially  in  McClure's  Magazine,  1907-1908,  revised  and  published  in 
book  form,  New  York,  1909. 


16  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

(1803-1866)  had  acquired  the  reputation  of  being  a  skillful 
clockmaker,  when,  about  1838,  the  lectures  of  Poyen  and  CoU- 
yer  converted  him  into  an  ardent  mesmerist.  He  gave  up  his 
trade,  chose  as  his  partner  a  young  man  named  Burkmar,  over 
whom  he  exerted  a  most  wonderful  control,  and  began  to  give 
public  exhibitions  along  the  traditional  lines. 

But  Quimby's  keen,  though  wholly  untutored,  mind  was  not 
long  satisfied  with  the  theories  he  had  at  first  accepted.  He 
became  convinced  that  Burkmar's  supposedly  objective  diag- 
nosis of  various  ailments  did  but  reproduce  the  opinions  either 
of  the  patient  or  of  some  others  actually  present  at  the  time  of 
this  diagnosis,  and  that  Burkmar's  astonishing  results  in  the 
healing  art  were  due,  not  to  the  remedies  he  prescribed,  but 
solely  to  the  blind  faith  of  the  patient.  An  all  too  bold  gen- 
eralization next  led  him  to  hold,  not  only  that  of  itself  no 
physical  remedy  was  efficacious,  but  even  that  disease  itself 
was  nothing  but  a  belief. 

This  simplified  mesmerism  wonderfully.  The  gist  of  Quim- 
by's  teaching,  still  maintained  both  in  Christian  Science  and  in 
New  Thought,-^  can  be  thus  summarized :  ^'Disease  is  belief,  and 
so  is  its  cure.  If  you  believe  that  you  are  sick,  change  this 
into  the  opposite  belief,  and  you  are  well."  With  this  principle 
to  guide  him,  Quimby,  in  1859,  opened  an  office  in  Portland, 
Maine.  His  name  and  fame  spread  far  and  wide,  and  clients 
came  flocking  to  him  in  ever  increasing  number.  It  was  not 
until  his  own  health  broke  down  that  he  closed  his  office.  This 
was  in  the  summer  of  1865.  Quimby  died  early  the  following 
year  (January  16)  at  his  residence  in  Belfast,  Maine,  aged 
sixty-four.^ 

"Quimbyism"  did  not  die  with  its  founder.     Rev.  Warren 

*The  expression  New  Thought  has  been  used  in  England  to  express  an 
entirely  different  system  of  thought.  It  is  in  its  American  meaning  that  the 
expression  is  to  be  understood  throughout  this  work. 

» Quimby's  education  was  of  the  scantiest.  The  son  of  a  blacksmith,  he 
had  but  a  very  brief  period  of  schooling.  This  accounts  for  the  fact  that 
he  was  little  of  a  reader  and  less  of  a  writer.  As  a  thinker  he  does  not 
rank  high,  though  we  may  allow  him  the  honor  of  being  an  original  and 
independent  thinker.  He  left  in  manuscript  ten  volumes  of  his  original 
thoughts.  Mr.  George  A.  Quimby,  in  whose  possession  his  father's  notes  are, 
persistently  refused  permission  to  publish  them  during  Mrs.  Eddy's  lifetime. 
They  have  been  recently  (1931)  edited  by  Dr.  Horatio  W.  Dresser. 


Modem  Mind-Movements  17 


Felt  Evans,  at  one  time  a  Methodist  minister,  but,  at  the  time 
when  he  placed  himself  under  Quimby's  treatment,  a  follower 
of  Swedenborg,  was  the  first  to  give  it  wider  currency  by  means 
of  the  press.  Quimby,  always  anxious  to  explain  his  theories 
to  those  willing  to  learn,  was  pleased  to  find  in  this  clergyman 
an  interested  and  intelligent  disciple.  At  the  time  when  Evans' 
first  production  in  the  interest  of  the  new  science  appeared  (in 
1869),  Quimby  himself  had  been  dead  for  three  years,  and  Mrs. 
Eddy,  the  founder  of  Christian  Science,  was  working  with 
might  and  main  at  a  production  which,  eventually,  was  to 
eclipse  the  fame  of  all  similar  productions,  but  which  was  not 
to  appear  in  print  for  another  six  years.  This  field,  then,  was 
far  from  being  preempted;  Evans  was  sowing  in  a  virgin  soil 
and  reaped  not  an  inconsiderable  following.  Even  now  his 
influence  persists  among  the  adherents  of  the  New  Thought 
movement.^ 


Mr.  Evans,  however,  soon  met  with  this  rival,  whose  future 
success  no  human  being  would  have  ventured  to  predict  at  that 
time.  Mary  Baker,  the  now  famous  Mrs.  Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy, 
self-styled  discoverer  and  founder  of  Christian  Science,  was 
born  on  a  farm  at  Bow,  New  Hampshire,  on  July  16,  1821.^ 
Her  earlier  life,  owing  to  her  delicate  constitution  and  nervous 
temperament,  was  marred  by  long  periods  of  illness.  When 
twenty-two  years  old,  she  married  George  Washington  Glover,  a 

*The  chief  works  of  Mr.  Evans  are  The  Mental  Cure  (Boston,  1869)  and 
The  Divine  Lww  of  Cure  (Boston,  1881).  Mr.  Evans  bolsters  Quimby's 
theories  with  numerous  citations  from  the  idealistic  philosophers,  both 
ancient  and  modern,  mentioning  among  others  Anaxagoras,  Pythagoras, 
Plato,  Schelling,  Fichte,  and  Hegel.  His  star  witness,  however,  is  Bishop 
Berkeley's  Treatise  Concerning  the  Principles  of  Human  Knowledge. 
Evans  finally  established  a  mind-cure  sanatorium  in  Salisbury,  Massachu- 
setts, where  he  died  in  1889. 

'The  most  trustworthy  life  of  Mrs.  Eddy  is  Miss  Milmine's  Life  of 
Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy  and  History  of  Christian  Science  (New  York,  1909). 
Entirely  untrustworthy  are  Mrs.  Eddy's  Retrospection  and  Introspection 
(Boston,  18997,  and  Miss  Sibyl  Wilbur's  Life  of  Mary  Baker  Eddy  (Boston, 
1907).  Other  works  that  may  be  recommended  are  Peabody,  Frederick  W.: 
The  Religio-Medical  Masquerade,  a  complete  exposure  of  Christian  Science 
(New  York,  1910  and  1915)  and  Mark  Twain's  humorous,  though  at  the 
same  time  quite  serious,  essays  entitled  Christian  Science  (New  York,  1907). 


18  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

friend  of  the  family  and  a  bricklayer  by  trade.  Mr.  Glover 
took  his  young  bride  to  South  Carolina,  but  within  six  months 
he  died,  leaving  his  widow  almost  destitute  among  strangers 
(1844).  The  Freemasons  gave  Mr.  Glover  a  decent  burial  and 
conveyed  his  widow  back  to  her  father's  house  in  Tilton,  New 
Hampshire,  where  her  only  child  was  born.  She  named  him 
after  his  deceased  father,  George  Washington  Glover. 

In  1853,  after  ten  years  of  widowhood,  marred  by  almost 
continuous  ill-health,  Mrs.  Glover  became  the  wife  of  an  itiner- 
ant dentist  named  Daniel  Patterson.  The  state  of  her  health 
continued  most  unsatisfactory.  It  was  as  Mrs.  Patterson  that 
she  visited  on  two  occasions  (1862  and  1864)  Dr.  Quimby, 
whose  influence  over  her  mental  and  physical  life  had  such  far- 
reaching  results.  Not  long  after  the  second  visit,  in  1866,  Mr. 
Patterson  declared  common  life  with  his  wife  unbearable,  made 
provision  for  her  support  and  abandoned  her.^  Now  began  a 
most  distressful  period  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  life,  the  memory  of 
which  she  would  have  liked  to  blot  out.  Abandoned  by  all, 
even  by  her  nearest  kin,  she  had  to  obtrude  herself  on  strangers, 
who  soon  tired  of  her  and  forced  her  to  look  for  another  hos- 
pitable roof.  A  change  only  came  when,  in  1870,  she  entered 
into  partnership  with  Richard  Kennedy,  a  young  Irish  lad, 
who  did  the  practical  work  of  healing  while  Mrs.  Glover  (for 
she  had  resumed  this  name)  devoted  her  energies  to  teaching 
and  writing.  Her  so-called  textbook  Science  and  Health  did 
not  appear  until  the  year  1875,  Mrs.  Glover  at  that  time  being 
fifty-four  years  old.  In  1877  she  married  a  man  of  her  own 
choice,  Asa  Gilbert  Eddy,  whose  name  she  was  to  make  famous. 
Her  husband  died  only  five  years  after,  in  1882.  From  that 
date  till  her  death  in  1910,  Calvin  A.  Frye  became  her  closest 
associate  in  her  ever-widening  affairs,  her  man  of  all  works, 
as  Mrs.  Eddy  called  him,  her  "steward,  bookkeeper,  secretary, 
and  footman,"  as  others  have  described  him,  so  important  in 
Mrs.  Eddy's  household  that  for   some  time  all  Mrs.   Eddy's 

*"In  1873  Mrs.  Patterson  applied  for  and  obtained  a  divorce  on  the 
ground  of  desertion.  The  doctor  did  not  contest  the  suit.  His  end  was 
melancholy.  Evidently  his  experiences  preyed  upon  his  mind;  he  wandered 
aimlessly  around  for  many  years,  and  eventually  lived  the  life  of  a  hermit 
near  Saco,  Maine.  There  he  died  in  1896."  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  in  McClure's 
Maffozine,  Vol.  XXVIII,  p.  24>1. 


Modern  Mmd-Movements  19 

personal  property  was  listed  in  his  name.-*^  In  1888,  how- 
ever, a  rival  to  Mrs.  Eddy's  favor  was  introduced  into  her 
household  in  the  person  of  Dr.  Ebenezer  Johnson  Foster,  a  man 
then  forty-one  years  old,  whom  in  that  year  Mrs.  Eddy  legally 
adopted  as  her  foster  son.  Her  own  son,  meanwhile,  was 
living  in  the  West,  estranged  from  his  mother,  who  had  never 
cared  for  him,  but  had  allowed  him  to  be  adopted  by  a  neigh- 
boring woman  and  to  accompany  her  westward.  Dr.  Foster- 
Eddy  himself  was  practically,  though  not  legally,  disowned,  in 
1897,  when  his  foster  mother  exiled  him  from  her  presence.^ 

Among  the  works  which  Mrs.  Eddy  undertook  and  carried 
to  a  successful  issue  at  an  age  when  most  people  feel  that  their 
life's  work  is  almost  done,  we  may  enumerate  the  following: 

In  1875  Mrs.  Eddy  published  the  first  edition  of  Science  and 
Health,  a  book  which  she  kept  on  revising  and  practically 
rewriting  many  times  over,  up  to  near  the  end  of  her  life.  In 
the  same  year,  being  then  fifty-four  years  old,  she  founded 
the  first  Christian  Science  organization. 

In  1878  she  preached  regularly  in  a  Baptist  church. 

In  1879  she  founded  the  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist,  and  had 
herself  ordained  the  first  pastor. 

In  1881  when  sixty  years  old,  she  founded  the  Massachusetts 
Metaphysical  College,  of  which  she  was  the  principal  and, 
for  most  of  the  time,  the  entire  faculty.  She  closed  the 
College  in  1889. 

In  1883  she  founded  and  edited  the  Christian  Science  Journal, 
a  monthly  publication  in  the  interest  of  Christian  Science. 

In  1884  she  taught  a  class  in  Chicago  and  in  1888  she  attended 
the  Chicago  convention,  where  she  achieved  a  most  remark- 
able personal  triumph. 

*  "From  the  day  Calvin  Frye  entered  the  service  of  Mrs.  Eddy,  he  lived 
in  literal  accordance  with  the  suggestion  of  that  passage  in  Science  and 
Health  (ed.  1906,  p.  31),  where  Mrs.  Eddy  reminds  us  that  Jesus  acknowl- 
edged no  family  ties.  .  .  .  When  his  father  died,  Calvin  went  down  to  Law- 
rence to  attend  the  funeral.  On  the  way  to  the  cemetery  he  stopped  the 
carriage  and  boarded  a  street  car  in  order  to  catch  the  next  train  back  to 
Boston.  By  the  time  his  sister  Lydia  died,  Calvin  had  become  so  completely 
absorbed  in  his  new,  life  and  duties  that  he  did  not  acknowledge  the  notifi- 
cation of  her  death,  did  not  go  to  her  funeral,  and  did  not  respond  to  a 
request  for  a  small  amount  of  money  to  help  defray  the  burial  expenses." 
Milmine:  op.  cit.,  in  McClure's  Magazine,  1907,  p.  575. 

*  Dr.  Foster,  a  homeopathic  physician  before  becoming  a  follower  of  Mrs. 
Eddy,  was  adopted  shortly  after  a  visit  to  Mrs.  Eddy  by  her  son,  Mr. 
Glover. 


20  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

In  1889  she  dissolved  and  reorganized  her  Church  in  Boston. 

In  1890  she  founded  the  Christian  Science  Quarterly, 

In  1894  The  Mother  Church  was  erected  and  dedicated  in  her 

honor.^ 
In  1895  she  inaugurated  the  Concord  Pilgrimages  (1895-1904) 

when  great  crowds  of  Christian  Scientists  flocked  to  Concord 

to  get  a  look  at  their  beloved  Leader.    In  the  same  year  she 

published  the  Church  Manual. 
In   1896   she  published  Miscellaneous   Writings    (1883-1896) 

and,  in  1899,  Retrospection  and  Introspection, 
In  1898  she  taught  her  last  class  and  founded  the  Christian 

Science  Sentinel,  a  weekly  publication. 
In  1906  the  immense  annex  to  the  Mother  Church  in  Boston  waa 

dedicated. 
In   1908  at   the  age  of   eighty-seven,   she   founded  the  daily 

Christian  Science  Monitor,^ 

This  eventful  career  was  brought  to  a  close  on  December  3, 
1910,  when  Mrs.  Eddy  died  of  pneumonia  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
nine.  The  announcement  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  death  was  made 
simultaneously  the  following  day,  which  was  Sunday,  by  Judge 
Clifford  P.  Smith,  first  reader  of  the  Mother  Church,  and  by 
Alfred  Farlow,  of  the  publication  committee,  in  a  statement 
to  the  press.  Few  of  the  congregation  at  the  morning  service 
knew  that  their  leader  and  teacher  had  passed  away.  The 
service  was  as  usual  and  the  two  readers.  Judge  Smith  and 
Mrs.  Leland  T.  Powers,  read  the  sermon  of  the  day  God,  the 
only  Cause  and  Creator,  with  voices  that  were  without  emo- 
tion or  had  any  suggestion  of  sadness.  The  service  in  every 
Christian  Science  Church  is  the  same  and  closes  with  a  hymn, 
the  reading  of  the  scientific  statement  of  Being,  and  the  bene- 
diction. The  routine  was  strictly  followed  on  this  day  until 
just  before  pronouncing  the  benediction.  Judge  Smith  broke 
through  the  usual  formula  with  the  following  announcement: 

*An  inscription  over  the  front  entrance  reads:  "The  First  Church  of 
Christ,  Scientist,  erected  Anno  Domini  1894.  A  testimonial  to  our  beloved 
teacher,  the  Rev.  Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy,  discoverer  and  founder  of  Christian 
Science ;  author  of  Science  and  Health  with  Key  to  the  Scriptures;  president 
of  the  Massachusetts  Metaphysical  College,  and  the  first  pastor  of  this 
denomination." 

^'For  further  details  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  life  consult  Chapter  XV,  and  for 
a  complete  list  of  her  works  with  succinct  description  of  contents,  the 
Bibliography. 


Modern  Mind-Movements  21 

"I  shall  now  read  part   of   a  letter,  written  by  our   revered 
leader  and  reprinted  on  p.  135  of  Miscellaneous  Writings: 

"  *My  Beloved  Students  :  You  may  be  looking  to  see  me  in 
my  accustomed  place  with  you,  but  this  you  must  no  longer 
expect.  When  I  retired  from  the  field  of  labor,  it  was  a  de- 
parture socially,  publicly,  and  finally,  from  the  routine  of 
such  material  modes  as  society,  and  our  societies  demand. 
Rumors  are  rumors — nothing  more.  I  am  still  with  you  on 
the  field  of  battle,  taking  forward  marches,  broader  and 
higher  views,  and  with  the  hope  that  you  will  follow.  .  .  . 

"  *A11  our  thoughts  should  be  given  to  the  absolute  de- 
monstration of  Christian  Science.  You  can  well  afford  to 
give  me  up,  since  you  have  in  my  last  revised  edition  of  Science 
and  Health  your  teacher  and  guide.*  '^ 

"Although  these  lines,"  said  Judge  Smith,  "were  written 
years  ago,  they  are  true  today  and  will  continue  to  be  true. 
But  it  becomes  my  duty  to  announce  that  Mrs.  Eddy  passed 
from  our  sight  last  night  at  quarter  before  eleven  o'clock, 
at  her  home  on  Chestnut  Hill." 

Only  those  who  sat  through  the  service  with  the  knowledge 
of  the  event  of  thirteen  hours  before,  heard  the  benediction. 
The  greater  part  of  the  congregation  tried  to  realize  what  had 
happened  and  left  their  seats  in  a  sort  of  dazed  silence.  Here 
and  there  was  a  little  gathering  and  a  few  interchanges  of  sen- 
timent, but  there  were  no  words  of  sorrow,  and  although  many 
a  tear  was  shed,  no  one  would  acknowledge  a  loss  of  any  sort, 
and  the  great  organ  pealed  its  recessional  as  joyously  and 
triumphantly  as  ever.^ 

m 

Mrs.  Eddy's  unusually  and  unexpectedly  long  life  was 
marked  in  its  latter  half  by  a  feverish  activity  and  by  marvelous 
business  aptitudes ;  throughout,  it  was  a  career  replete  with 

*  These  words  were  written  by  Mrs.  Eddy  to  be  read  at  the  meeting  of 
the  Massachusetts  Metaphysical  College  Association,  June  3,  1891. 

^  This  account  is  taken  substantially  from  the  Boston  Evening  Transcript 
of  December  5,  1910.  It  is  here  reproduced  at  length,  because  it  gives  a 
correct  account  of  the  Christian  Science  church  services,  and  of  the  per- 
sonal attitude  assumed  by  many  Christian  Scientists. 


^%  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

the  most  varied  fortunes,  lending  itself  well  to  the  legendary 
embellishments  with  which  Mrs.  Eddy's  followers,  encouraged 
by  her  own  example,  have  surrounded  it.^  Of  her  life  it  can 
truly  be  said  that  fact  is  stranger  than  fiction.  How  this 
woman,  whose  life  for  forty  years,  with  but  short  intermissions, 
was  a  long  succession  of  ailments  that  seemed  to  bring  her 
more  than  once  to  death's  door,  came  before  the  world  with 
the  claim  of  having  been  cured  without  doctor  or  drug;  how  she 
passed  the  rest  of  her  life,  for  nearly  half  a  century,  denying 
the  reality  of  sin,  sickness,  death,  and  of  matter  itself;  how 
she,  an  illiterate  woman,  who  at  the  age  of  forty  neither  wrote 
nor  spoke  correct  English,  became  the  author  of  a  book  which  is 
put  by  many  on  a  level  with  the  Sacred  Scriptures  themselves ; 
how,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  she  repeatedly  denied  the  existence 
of  the  supernatural,  she  persuaded  hundreds  of  thousands  that 
hers  was  a  new  and  final  revelation;  how,  though  penniless  at 
the  age  of  fifty  and  living  on  the  charity  of  others,  she  amassed 
before  her  death  a  fortune  of  considerably  more  than  two 
million  dollars ;  how,  after  questioning  the  usefulness  of  church 
organizations  and  forcing  her  followers  to  give  up  their  church 
membership,  this  remarkable  woman  founded  a  new  Church 
with  afiiliations  in  every  important  center  of  the  United  States 
and  in  almost  every  country  of  the  world ;  how  this  was  accom- 
plished when  she  had  reached  the  ripe  old  age  of  nearly  three 
score  and  ten ;  how  she  surrounded  herself  with  a  loyal  band  of 
men  and  women,  ever  ready  to  carry  out  her  every  wish,  no 
matter  how  great  the  sacrifices  involved :  all  this  is  a  story  too 
long  to  be  told  in  these  pages,  for  details  of  which  her  biog- 
raphies must  be  consulted. 

It  had  been  predicted  that  the  death  of  Mrs.  Eddy  would 
spell  the  end  of  Christian  Science.  Time  has  given  the  lie  to 
this  prophecy.  Legal  contentions  there  are  not  a  few ;  ^  but 
despite  these,  if  signs  can  be  trusted,  the  religion  is  prosperous. 
It  may  be  that  Mrs.  Eddy,  by  leaving  the  bulk  of  her  fortune 

*  For  proof  of  this  assertion,  cf.  Miss  Sibyl  Wilbur:  Life  of  Mary  Baker 
Eddy  (Boston,  1913). 

'Consult  chapt.  XV  for  details. 


Modern  Mind-MoveTiients  J88 

to  her  Church,  materially  stren^hened  its  foundations ;  ^  at 
the  same  time  it  is  evident  that  her  doctrines  have  such  a  hold 
on  the  imagination  of  her  adherents  that  the  Church  is  in  no 
immediate  danger  of  collapse. 

The  progress  of  Christian  Science  is  indicated  by  the  fol- 
lowing figures.  In  1879  about  a  score  of  persons  under  the 
presidency  of  Mrs.  Eddy  met  together  to  found  a  religious 
organization  to  be  known  as  the  Church  of  Christ  (Scientist). 
The  charter  members  numbered  but  twenty-six.  About  ten 
years  later  (1890),  this  organization  reported  221  churches 
with  a  membership  of  8724;  sixteen  years  later  (1906)  the 
United  States  Religious  Census  Report  gave  it  a  total  mem- 
bership of  82,332  with  16,116  children  in  their  Sunday  schools, 
almost  ten  times  as  many  as  sixteen  years  before.  Since  then 
no  official  census  has  been  taken,  as  Mrs.  Eddy  has  ordered  that 
"Christian  Scientists  shall  not  report  for  publication  the  num- 
ber of  the  members  of  the  Mother  Church  nor  that  of  the 
branch  churches.'^  ^  Dr.  Snowden,  however,  on  the  basis  of  the 
lists  of  organizations  regularly  published  in  the  Christian 
Science  Journal,  has  reckoned  that  in  December,  1919,  there 
was  a  total  of  1702  organizations,  of  which  1504  were  in  the 
United  States,  and  198  in  foreign  countries.  These  organiza- 
tions are  divided  as  follows : 

Churches 

United  States    840 

Other  Countries 122 

Total 962  730  1702 

*Mrs.  Eddy's  will  and  two  codicils  provided  for  all  but  about  $250,000 
of  her  estate,  conservatively  valued  at  $2,250,000,  going  to  the  Christian 
Science  Church.  Each  one  of  the  four  children  of  Mr.  Glover  was  to  receive 
$10,000.  Mr.  Frye  was  bequeathed  $20,000  with  the  right  to  reside  at  385 
Commonwealth  Avenue  as  long  as  he  lived;  also  $500  worth  of  Mrs.  Eddy's 
personal  belongings.  One  hundred  thousand  dollars  was  to  be  set  aside  for 
the  teaching  of  indigent  practitioners. 

^Church  Marmal  (89th  ed.),  Art.  VIII,  sect.  28:  It  is  believed  that  the 
slackening  rate  of  increase  induced  Mrs.  Eddy  to  put  this  prohibition  on 
her  statute  book.  Cf.  Carroll:  The  Religious  Forces  of  the  United  States 
(revised  1896),  pp.  96-98.  At  that  time  the  association  owned  only  seven 
church  edifices. 


Societies 

Total 

664 

1504 

76 

198 

^4  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

In  June,  1907,  the  Mother  Church,  according  to  the  last 
report  of  the  secretary,  had  43,876  members.  It  must,  however, 
be  noted  that  owing  to  the  peculiar  organization  of  the  Chris- 
tian Science  Church,  by  far  the  larger  number  of  these  be- 
longed at  the  same  time  to  some  branch  church.  Figuring  on 
an  average  membership  of  100  for  every  church  and  of  25  for 
every  society,  we  get  a  total  of  about  114,700  Christian  Scien- 
tists at  the  end  of  1919.  As  this  number  does  not  include  the 
children,  who  are  not  enrolled  as  members,  this  figure  must  be 
doubled  or  tripled  to  obtain  an  idea  of  the  number  of  people 
who  come  under  Christian  Science  influences.^ 

Even  though  this  falls  far  short  of  the  millions  which  some 
people  believe  they  number,  and  still  far  shorter  of  the  estimate 
Mr.  Clements  ventured  to  make  some  years  back,^  yet,  for  a 
society  that  in  its  original  form  is  hardly  more  than  fifty 
years  old,  and  in  its  reorganized  form  not  much  more  than 
thirty,  the  numerical  strength  is  quite  remarkable. 

No  less  significant  is  the  social  standing  of  the  average 
Christian  Scientist.  Whether  it  be  that  its  appeal  does  not 
interest  the  lower  classes,  or  that  Christian  Science  is  too  ex- 
pensive a  luxury  to  indulge  in,  the  fact  is  that  the  Christian 
Science  congregations  are  largely  composed  of  the  well-to-do, 
with  a  fair  sprinkling  of  educated  men  among  them.  Here  it 
may  be  a  lawyer,  or  a  judge,  who  makes  himself  the  apostle  of 
the  new  Creed  and  the  defender  of  its  founder ;  there  a  physician 
or  a  clergyman  gives  up  his  profession  to  throw  in  his  lot  with 
the  Christian  Scientists.^  On  January  5  and  6,  1915,  United 
States  Senator  Works  in  a  lengthy,  well-documented  speech 
took  up  the  defense  of  Christian  Science  before  his  colleagues  in 
the  Senate.*     As  far  back  as  1898  the  Earl  of  Dunmore,  a 

*Snowden:  The  Truth  about  Christian  Science  (Philadelphia,  1930),  p. 
221.  Cf.  0]^cial  U.  8.  Religious  Census  for  1916,  Vol.  I,  p.  11.  Wilder  D. 
Quint  in  New  England  Magazine,  1909:  The  Growth  of  Christian  Science, 
p.  317. 

"Mark  Twain,  o'p.  cit.,  p.  72:  "It  is  a  reasonably  safe  guess  that  in 
America  in  1920  there  will  be  ten  million  Christian  Scientists,  and  three 
millions  in  Great  Britain;  that  in  America  in  1920  the  Christian  Scientists 
will  be  a  political  force,  in  1930  politically  formidable,  and  in  1940  the  gov- 
erning power  in  the  Republic — to  remain  that,  permanently." 

»Cf.  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  pp.  209  fF. 

*  Cf .  Congressional  Record,  Vol.  62,  Part  I,  pp.  1021-1057. 


Modern  Mind-Movements  ^5 

peer  of  the  Scottish  realm,  came  with  his  wife  to  Boston  to 
study  Christian  Science  and  both  were  received  by  Mrs.  Eddy, 
who  at  that  time  resided  at  Concord,  New  Hampshire.  Lady 
Dunmore  was  also  present  at  the  June  Communion  of  the  fol- 
lowing year.  On  this  occasion  her  son.  Lord  Fincastle,  is  said 
to  have  come  from  India  to  join  his  mother  in  this  service 
and  to  have  returned  immediately.  Her  daughter  also  came  to 
America  to  attend  the  annual  communion.^ 

Mrs.  Eddy's  success  is  thus  explained  by  Miss  Milmine: 

*'Mrs.  Eddy's  philosophy  makes  a  double  appeal  to  hu- 
man nature,  oiFering*  food  both  to  our  inherent  craving  for 
the  mystical  and  to  our  desire  to  do  well  in  a  worldly  way 
and  teaching  that  these  extremes  are  not  incompatible  in 
Science.  Indeed,  as  one  of  the  inducements  offered  to  pur- 
chasers of  the  first  edition  of  Science  and  Health,  Mrs.  Glover 
advertised  it  as  a  book  that  'affords  opportunity  to  acquire 
a  profession  by  which  you  can  accumulate  a  fortune,'  and  in 
the  book  itself  she  said  that  *men  of  business  have  said  this 
science  was  of  great  advantage  from  a  secular  point  of  view.' 
And  in  later  and  more  prosperous  days  Mrs.  Eddy  has  writ- 
ten in  satisfied  retrospect :  'In  the  early  history  of  Christian 
Science  among  my  thousands  of  students  few  were  wealthy. 
Now,  Christian  Scientists  are  not  indigent;  and  their  com- 
fortable fortunes  are  acquired  by  healing  mankind  morally, 
physically,  and  spiritually.' 

"Whatever  may  be  the  Christian  Science  theories  regard- 
ing the  nothingness  of  other  forms  of  matter,  the  various 
forms  of  currency  continue  to  appear  very  real  to  the  spirit- 
ualized vision  of  its  followers.  Mrs.  Eddy  insists  that  her 
healers  shall  be  well  paid.  She  says,  'Christian  Science 
demonstrates  that  the  patient  who  pays  what  he  is  able  to 
pay,  is  more  apt  to  recover  than  he  who  withholds  a  slight 
equivalent  for  health.' 

"Worldly  prosperity,  indeed,  plays  an  important  part  in 
the  Christian  Science  religion  today.  Poverty  is  believed  to 
be  an  error,  like  sin,  sickness,  and  death;  and  Christian 
Scientists^m  to  make  what  they  call  their  financial  demonr- 

*Cf.  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  448.  The  annual  communion  service  which 
formed  an  event  in  the  earlier  days  of  the  Mother  Church  was  later  sup- 
pressed by  Mrs.  Eddy. 


26  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

stration  early  in  their  experience.     A  poor  Christian  Scien- 
tist is  as  much  of  an  anomaly  as  a  sick  Christian  Scientist.'*  ^ 

What  a  contrast  between  this  new  religion  which  pretends 
to  be  Christian  and  that  of  the  Son  of  Man  who  had  not 
whereon  to  lay  His  head ! 

IV 

When  Mrs.  Eddy,  assuming  the  tone  of  an  inspired  prophet, 
deliberately  ignored  and  slurred  Dr.  Quimby,  she  roused  the 
dormant  energies  of  Quimby's  admirers  and  friends.  Unwit- 
tingly she  became  instrumental  in  gathering  together  into  a 
movement  what,  without  this  incentive,  would  probably  never 
have  got  beyond  the  stage  of  half-hearted  and  desultory  at- 
tempts at  healing  in  imitation  of  Quimby.  The  latter  found 
valiant  defenders  in  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Julius  A.  Dresser,  who,  in 
the  early  sixties,  had  both  been  his  patients.  Mr.  Dresser  had 
worked  under  Quimby ;  it  had  been  his  duty  to  explain  the  first 
principles  of  the  new  science  to  new  comers  and  to  usher  them 
into  the  "Doctor's"  presence.  In  this  capacity  he  had  made 
the  acquaintance  of  Mrs.  Patterson,  the  future  founder  of 
Christian  Science.  When  Quimby  died,  Mrs.  Patterson  earn- 
estly entreated  Mr.  Dresser  to  continue  Dr.  Quimby's  practice. 
Had  he  done  so,  Christian  Science  might  never  have  been  born. 
But  Mr.  Dresser's  health  was  impaired;  he  and  his  wife  both 
dreaded  the  publicity  connected  with  such  an  undertaking; 
they  had  decided  to  try  a  change  of  climate  and  started  for 
the  West.  Their  departure  left  the  field  clear,  and  Mrs.  Pat- 
terson hastened  to  occupy  it. 

When  Mr.  Dresser  returned  from  the  West,  he  was  surprised 
to  learn  of  the  growing  fame  and  of  the  extravagant  claims  of 
his  former  friend,  who  had  reassumed  the  name  of  her  first 
husband.  He  now  no  longer  hesitated:  he  took  up  mental 
healing  as  a  means  of  livelihood  and  defended  the  title  of  his 
friend  and  benefactor  Quimby  to  the  honor  of  having  invented 
this  new  system  of  healing.  Mrs.  Glover  retorted,  and  thus 
was  launched  that  famous  Quimby  controversy,  out  of  which 
Mrs.  Eddy  emerged  so  ingloriously,  and  the  details  of  which 

*Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  209.    Except  when  otherwise  stated,  the  book,  and 
not  the  magazine  articles,  are  quoted. 


Modern  Mind-Movements  %1 

may  be  read  in  Miss  Milmine's  Life,  in  Horatio  W.  Dresser's 
History,  and  in  Peabody's  Masquerade. 

Mr.  Dresser's  championing  of  Dr.  Quimby's  claims  bore 
fruit  in  opening  the  eyes  of  some  who  had  been  misled  by  Mrs. 
Eddy's  assumption  of  superior  knowledge.  It  cannot  be  said 
that,  at  that  early  date,  anything  like  a  concentrated  opposi- 
tion took  shape;  nevertheless,  forces  that  would  have  spent 
themselves,  if  left  alone,  began  to  gravitate  around  this  sem- 
blance of  an  organized  opposition.  Many  practitioners  who 
might  have  religiously  adhered  to  a  divinely  appointed  guide, 
now  boldly  struck  out  for  themselves  on  independent  lines  and 
created  in  various  sections  of  the  country  various  centers  of 
mental  healing.  These  are  the  raw  material  which  in  the  course 
of  time  congregated  into  what  is  now  known  as  the  New 
Thought  movement.  Of  this  stage  of  development  Dr.  Horatio 
W.  Dresser  writes : 

"Passing  by  the  beginnings  of  Christian  Science  (1875- 
1882)  we  come  to  a  time  when  the  idealistic  interpretation 
of  Quimby's  theory,  set  on  foot  by  the  writings  of  Mr.  Evans 
and  Mrs.  Eddy,  had  gained  sufficient  hold  in  Boston,  so  that 
readers  and  former  students  began  to  branch  out  for  them- 
selves. The  Mind-Cure  or  Boston  Craze,  as  it  was  first  called, 
gradually  spread  to  other  cities,  assuming  new  forms  with 
each  new  leader.  Thus  a  former  student  of  Christian  Sci- 
ence established  the  new  movement  in  Hartford,  Connecticut, 
and  from  that  center  teachers  went  to  New  York,  where  a 
variation  of  the  Mind-Cure  became  known  as  metaphysical 
healing.  Gradually  the  movement  spread  to  western  cities, 
where  it  became  known  under  yet  other  names,  such  as  Practi- 
cal Christianity  in  Kansas  City,  and  Divine  Science  in  San 
Francisco  and  Denver. 

"After  1890  a  new  school  of  writers  appeared,  among 
them  Henry  Wood  and  R.  W.  Trine,  who  gave  a  larger  mean- 
ing to  the  original  term  and  endeavored  to  make  of  the 
Thought  a  comprehensive  theory  for  the  whole  of  life.  A 
Church  was  established  in  Boston  as  early  as  1886,  and  since 
that  time  many  Sunday  meetings  have  flourished  for  brief 
periods.  Magazines  also  began  to  appear  early  and  active 
propagandism  began.     A  general  convention  was  also,  held 


l_ 


28  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

during  that  period,  although  it  was  many  years  before  a 
national  convention  was  undertaken.  The  first  Metaphysical 
Club  was  organized  in  1895.  It  was  followed  by  similar  clubs, 
centers  and  circles  in  various  parts  of  the  country.  Pres- 
ently the  diversity  of  books  and  magazines  became  such  that  it 
was  difficult  even  for  close  students  of  the  movement  to  keep 
the  run  of  them.  Out  of  this  diversity  has  come  the  New 
Thought  as  known  today."  ^ 

We  must  briefly  pass  in  review  this  ever  widening  circle  of 
mental  cults,  In  1894  Mrs.  Van-Anderson  organized  the 
Church  of  the  Higher  Life  in  Boston.  The  same  year  Miss 
Sarah  J.  Farmer  established  the  Greenacre  Conferences,  a  sum- 
mer camp  which,  though  not  exclusively  devoted  to  New 
Thought,  was  largely  instrumental  in  bringing  persons  of  the 
same  mind  together,  and  continued  to  do  so,  until  Miss  Farmer 
espoused  Bahaism  and  other  vagaries  not  directly  connected 
with  New  Thought.  The  same  year  also  was  organized  at 
Boston  the  Procopeia,  the  first  New  Thought  Society  which, 
however,  was  short-lived  and  eventually  merged  into  the  Meta- 
physical  Clvh  organized  about  the  same  time.  Of  this  club  Mr. 
Dresser  says: 

"This  was  the  first  permanent  New  Thought  club  and  it 
set  the  standard  for  such  societies  elsewhere.  It  was  the  first 
mental-healing  society  to  put  its  special  interests  on  a  large 
basis  with  a  view  to  reaching  the  world.  It  was  the  beginning 
of  the  activities  which  grew  in  the  course  of  time  into  a  world- 
wide movement.  It  led  the  way  for  the  establishment  of  cen- 
ters, circles,  or  other  organizations  with  the  same  general 
interests  in  view,  whatever  the  names  attached  to  them.  The 
fact  that  it  came  into  existence  was  a  sign  that  the  mental- 
healing  movement  had  passed  out  of  its  preliminary  or  ex- 
perimental stage  and  was  assuming  the  general  character- 
istics which  it  was  to  continue  to  possess.  .  .  .  Other  at- 
tempts were  made  to  develop  a  national  movement.  But  it 
was  the  movement  which  began  in  Boston  that  eventually 
succeeded.  Out  of  it  grew  the  effort  to  form  a  permanent 
international  organization."  ^ 

*  Dresser:  Handbook  of  the  New  Thought  (New  York,  1917),  p.  33  ff. 
'Dresser's  History,  p.  183. 


Modern  Mind-Movements  29 

The  first  New  Thought  Convention,  using  that  name,  was 
held  in  Boston  in  1899.  Previous  to  this.  Divine  Science,  that 
modified  Christian  Science,  which  had  taken  such  firm  roots  in 
the  Far  West,  had  held  annual  conventions  from  1894  to  1899 
(with  the  exception  of  the  year  1898)  in  San  Francisco  (1894, 
1899),  Chicago  (1895),  Kansas  City  (1896),  and  St.  Louis 
(1897),  which  cities  are  still  strong  centers  of  the  movement. 
In  1899,  Boston,  the  home  of  Christian  Science,  began  also  to 
lead  in  New  Thought.  Up  to  then,  the  various  independent 
organizations,  scattered  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of 
the  land,  almost  invariably  owed  their  existence  directly  or  in- 
directly to  Mrs.  Eddy.  Chicago  had  long  since  its  contingent 
of  mind-healers :  there  Mrs.  Ursula  Gestefeld  drew  upon  herself 
the  wrath  of  the  Boston  autocrat  by  publishing  an  explanation 
of  Science  and  Health;  there  also  appeared  in  1891  Miss  Yar- 
nall's  Practical  Healing  for  Mind  and  Body,  and  Anna  W. 
Mills'  Practical  Metaphysics  for  Healing  and  Self-Ctdture,  In 
San  Francisco  Mrs.  Hopkins  had  taught  in  1887  a  class  of 
250  people  and  had  laid  the  foundation  for  the  establishment 
of  Christian  Science  Homes,  now  called  Homes  of  Truth,  in 
San  Francisco,  Los  Angeles,  San  Diego,  Oakland,  San  Jose, 
Sacramento,  Berkeley  and  Sierra  Madre  in  California,  also  at 
Victoria,  British  Columbia,  and  Walla  Walla  in  Washington 
State.  In  Denver,  Colorado,  the  psycho-therapeutic  movement 
which  is  now  in  a  flourishing  condition  there,  was  inaugurated 
and  fostered  by  the  pioneer  work  and  teaching  of  Melinda  E. 
Cramer,  the  author  of  Divine  Science  and  Healing,  1907,  and 
ably  seconded  by  Fannie  B.  James,  the  author  of  Truth  amd 
Health,  a  book  "lovingly  dedicated  to  the  World."  Here  also 
the  Colorado  College  of  Divine  Science  was  incorporated  in 
1898.  "Satisfactory  work  in  all  the  courses  (primary,  train- 
ing, theological  and  normal,  each  one  covering  a  period  of 
from  two  to  four  weeks)  entitles  the  student  to  the  College 
diploma,  and  this  signifies  that  he  is  a  fully  equipped  healer, 
minister  and  teacher."  ^ 

*  Cf .  James :  Truth  and  Health.  Science  of  the  Perfect  Mind  and  th4 
Law  of  its  Demonstration — New  Light  upon  Old  Truths.  The  Textbook  of 
the  Colorado  College  of  Divine  Science  (3d  ed.,  Denver,  Colo.,  1905),  p.  368. 
Gestefeld:  A  Statement  of  Christian  Science  (Chicago,  1888). 


80  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

In  St.  Louis  the  movement  assumed  the  name  of  Practical 
Christianity,  inaugurated  a  German  branch  and,  since  1893, 
published  a  German  periodical,  entitled  Das  Wort.  Cleveland 
saw  the  founding,  by  the  Rev.  J.  F.  C.  Grumbine,  of  the  Order 
of  the  White  Rose  and  also  of  the  College  of  Divine  Science  and 
Realization.  In  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania;  Washington,  D. 
C,  and  other  places  the  movement  also  soon  obtained  a  sure 
footing.  Mr.  Sabin  was  a  pioneer  in  Reformed  Christian 
Science  in  Washington,  D.  C,  and  Mr.  Mason  in  Brooklyn^ 
New  York.^  Thus  the  way  was  prepared  for  the  attempt  to 
group  these  several  bodies  under  one  general  organization. 

The  first  New  Thought  convention  properly  so-called  gave 
birth  to  the  International  Metaphysical  League ;  this  was  trans- 
formed in  1905  into  the  World  New  Thought  Federation,  and, 
in  1908,  into  the  National  New  Thought  Alliance,  which,  in 
name,  if  not  yet  in  fact,  became  in  1914  again  international. 
Since  this  its  final  reorganization,  so-called  international  con- 
gresses have  been  held  in  San  Francisco,  St.  Louis,  Boston, 
Kansas  City,  and  in  Washington,  D.  C,  which  has  now  become 
the  headquarters  for  the  movement. 

The  League,  Federation,  or  Alliance  has  no  easy  time  try- 
ing to  keep  so  many  divergent  elements  harmoniously  united 
in  the  one  association.  However,  the  work  of  organization 
seems  to  be  now  fairly  under  way  and  to  work  satisfactorily. 
New  Thought  never  excited  quite  the  same  amount  of  opposi- 
tion as  Christian  Science,  because  it  does  not  claim  so  much 
for  itself  as  its  rival.  It  is  likely  that  its  growth  will  continue 
unchecked  for  many  years  to  come.  Being  less  compact,  it  is 
more  elastic  and  also  more  elusive  than  Christian  Science. 
Criticism  will,  therefore,  naturally  center  on  the  latter,  and 
touch  the  former  indirectly. 

A  word  or  two  on  kindred  subjects  and  studies  will  help 
to  give  to  this  essay  its  proper  orientation.  There  is  nowadays 
no  dearth  of  literature  on  these  topics. 

"In  recent  years,"  writes  Dr.  William  Sadler,  "we  have 
been  literally  deluged  with  literature  on  suggestion,  mental 
healing,  hypnotism,  psychotherapy,  psychic  fads,  and  various 
*  Dresser's  History,  pp.  232-253,  196  ff. 


Modern  Mind-Movements  SI 

healing  'isms,'  not  to  mention  New  Thought,  Christian  Sci- 
ence, and  other  systems  of  religious  healing.  It  would  seem 
as  if  doctor,  preacher  and  layman  were  now  vying  with  one 
another  in  an  effort  to  atone  for  their  past  indifference  to, 
and  neglect  of,  the  important  subjects  mental  healing  and 
moral  therapeutics."  ^ 

It  is  perhaps  too  much  to  say  that  the  mind  of  the  scientific  — 
world  has  completely  reversed  itself  on  the  score  of  magnetic 
or  hypnotic  healing;  it  has  at  least  divested  itself  of  that  su- 
preme contempt  with  which  it  used  to  treat  these  matters.  "^ 
Hypnotic  facts  have  acquired  rights  of  citizenship  in  scientific 
circles.  Credit  for  this  changed  attitude  is  due  in  no  small 
measure  to  the  investigations  of  two  rival  camps,  the  Paris  and 
the  Nancy  school  of  hypnotism  with  their  respective  leaders 
Charcot  and  Bemheim.  As  their  conclusions  will  have  no  small 
bearing  on  our  subject,  it  may  be  as  well  to  indicate  here  in  a 
general  way  that  the  Paris  school  has  conceded  fully  and  ex- 
plicitly that  the  Nancy  school  has  found  the  proper  explanation 
for  the  common  phenomena  which  they  both  investigated. 

Charcot,  the  head  of  the  Paris  school,  had  looked  upon  -^ 
hypnosis  as  a  pathological  state,  and  upon  hypnotic  influence 
as  a  real  transference  of  vital  powers  from  the  operator  to  the 
subject.  Bemheim,  the  founder  of  the  Nancy  school,  on  the 
contrary,  proved  successfully  that  hypnosis  was  not  a  patho- 
logical condition,  and  that  the  real  cause  of  its  phenomena 
was  not  a  sort  of  electric  current  of  vital  powers  passing  from 
operator  to  subject,  but  was  due  to  the  power  of  suggestion, 
which  would  direct  the  subject's  subliminal  mind  to  perform  un- 
consciously certain  definite  acts.^ 

It  is  from  this  latter  hypothesis  that  the  two  quasi-scientific 
mental  cures,  inaugurated  by  Dubois  and  Freud,  start.  Dr. 
Paul  Dubois  of  Bern,  Switzerland,  who  has  been  trained  in  the 
Nancy  school,  discards  hypnotism  altogether  and  confines  him- 
self to  the  treatment  by  suggestion  in  the  wakings  state.  His  *** 
plan  consists  in  reeducating  intellectually  and  morally  nervous       // 

*  Sadler:  The  Physiology  of  Faith  and  Fear  (Chicago,  1912),  Preface,  p. 
vii. 

'Cf.  Bemheim:  La  Suggestion  (Nancy,  1884);  Pierre  Janet:  Les  Medi- 
cations Psychologiques  (Paris,  1919),  Vol.  I,  pp.  159-166. 


82  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

^    patients  that  are  brought  to  him.    There  is  little  essential  dif- 
ference between  his   practice   and   that   of   our  mind-healers, 
though  there  is  no  parity  whatever  between  his  theories  and 
theirs.^     The  same  thing  may  be  said  concerning  the  much- 
0^  talked-about  psycho-analytical  method  of  the  recently  defunct 
Viennese  professor  Freud.     This  latter  insisted  especially  on 
^  the  danger  of  suppressed  emotions  and  disagreeable  reminis- 
"*  cences  to  the  health  of  the  individual.     Freud  has  pushed  his 
system  to  extremes  by  finding  for  all  such  suppressed  fears 
and  hidden  impulses  a  sexual  basis.    This,  however,  need  not  be 
considered  essential  to  his  system.^ 

Mental  or  faith-healing,  since  its  apparent  success  in  Chris- 
tian Science,  strongly  appeals  to  certain  Protestant  communi- 
ties. The  question  has  been  seriously  asked  whether  Protestant- 
ism must  adopt  Christian  Science  or  at  least  Christian  Science 
healing.^  Some  churches  have  not  waited  for  this  question  to 
be  broached.  Mr.  J.  M.  Hickson,  a  lay  member  of  the  Church 
of  England,  has  for  years  held  healing  services  in  England, 
claiming  that  the  gift  of  healing  is  essential  to  the  Christian 
Church.  Before  the  Pan-Anglican  Congress  in  1908  he  stated 
"that  we  should  always  keep  clearly  before  us  the  fact  that 
there  is  only  One  Healer,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  Himself,  who  is 
the  Truth,  the  Way  and  the  Life  of  spiritual  healing";  that 
''because  Christ  is  the  Healer,  there  is  no  limitation  to  His 
*^  work,  except  that  of  man's  receptiveness,  and  that  His  healing 
^  is  not  only  for  the  body,  but  also  for  the  mind  and  spirit."  * 
Mr.  Hickson  has  lately  toured  the  United  States,  drawing 
everywhere  large  crowds  to  his  healing  services.  His  example 
was  immediately  followed  by  a  host  of  other  advocates  of 
divine  healing. 

*  Dubois':  The  Influence  of  the  Mind  over  the  Body,  translated  by  L.  B. 
Gallatin  from  5th  French  edition  (New  York,  1906);  The  Psychic  Treat- 
ment of  Nervous  Disorders,  translated  by  Jelliffe  and  White  (New  York, 
1906). 

'Cf.  Wolfram:  Oegen  Psycho- Analyse  (Leipzig,  1918);  Jones,  J.:  Psy- 
cho-Analysis  (1915)  ;  Maeder  in  L'Ann^e  Psychologique,  Vol.  XVIII  (1912), 
"Sur  le  Mouvement  Psycho-Analytique." 

'  Hegeman,  in  North  American  Review,  December,  1913,  p.  823,  and  July, 
1914,  p.  122. 

*  Report,  Vol.  Ill,  sect.  B.,  p.  20.  Cf.  Paget:  Faith  and  Works  of  Chris- 
tian Science  (New  York,  1909),  pp.  187  ff. 


Modem  Mind-Movenients  33 

Even  more  important  than  the  work  of  Mr.  Hickson  in 
England  is  that  inaugurated  in  1906,  by  Dr.  Elwood  Worces- 
ter in  the  Emmanuel  Church,  Boston,  Massachusetts.  It  differs 
from  other  movements  in  this,  that  it  limits  itself  to  nervous 
diseases  and  requires  the  cooperation  of  the  physicians.  The 
authors  of  this  innovation  insist  that  their  movement  "bears  no 
relation  to  Christian  Science,  either  by  way  of  protest  or  of 
imitation."  "We  have  taken  our  stand,"  they  declare,  "fairly 
and  squarely  on  the  religion  of  Christ,  as  that  religion  is  re- 
vealed in  the  New  Testament,  and  as  it  is  interpreted  by  modern 
scholarship,  and  we  have  combined  with  us  the  power  of  genuine 
science."  ^  In  spite  of  these  emphatic  statements,  few,  I  think, 
would  deny  that  the  Emmanuel,  and  similar,  movements  owe 
indirectly  their  existence  to  the  success  and  the  danger  of 
Christian  Science. 

This  rapid  survey  shows  only  imperfectly  the  importance 
which  attaches  nowadays  to  the  modern  mind-movements,  in 
general,  and  to  Christian  Science,  in  particular.  Ridicule  has 
been  tried  and  has  been  found  wanting.  In  spite  of  sarcasm 
and  invective.  Christian  Science  has  steadily  grown.  Nor  must 
we  neglect  its  rival  movements  which  become  daily  of  greater 
importance.  Men  of  note,  like  the  late  Professor  William  James 
or  the  late  Hugo  Munsterberg,  both  of  Harvard  University, 
or  like  James  H.  Leuba  of  Bryn  Mawr  College,  who  have  in- 
vestigated these  movements,  do  not  speak  slightingly  of  them. 
Hardly  any  subject  is  more  frequently  alluded  to  in  our  days 
in  public  speech  or  print.  In  1906  Mgr.  Benson  in  a  conference 
on  Christian  Science  could  still  give  the  following  advice: 

"You  will  forgive  me  perhaps,  if  I  end  with  two  or  three 
recommendations  to  any  who  have  to  deal  with  persons  suf- 
fering from  this  distressing  form  of  thought.  First,  I  am 
sure  that  we  must  keep  our  tempers,  and  secondly,  our  sense 
of  humor.  If  it  is  true  that  Protestantism  rises  in  any  degree 
from  the  absence  of  this  latter  virtue,  I  am  certain  that 
Christian  Science,  its  latest  development,  rises  almost  entirely 
from  it.     I  do  not  say  that  no  'scientist'  possesses  a  grain 

^Cf.  Worcester-McComb-Coriat:  Beligion  and  Medicine  (New  York, 
1908),  p.  13;  also  Worcester-McComb :  The  Christian  Beligion  as  a  Healing 
Power  (New  York,  1909). 


34  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

of  humor,  but  that  such  is  bound  to  keep  it  in  a  locked  cup- 
board when  he  treats  of  his  religion.  Let  us  therefore  bring 
to  bear  this  genial  solvent  of  laughter  and  see  whether  Chris- 
tian Science  is  as  impervious  to  it  as  to  so  many  other  facts 
of  the  world  in  which  we  live."  ^ 

After  all  that  precedes,  it  must  be  apparent  that  ridicule 
can  no  longer  be  the  main  weapon  that  we  must  wield  against 
this  new  philosophy  and  new  religion.  It  becomes  necessary 
that  we  should  try  to  see  it  as  the  Christian  Scientist  sees  it, 
and  to  discover  in  it  that  grain  of  truth  which  renders  it  ac- 
ceptable to  so  many.  At  the  same  time  we  must  keep  in  view 
the  danger  against  revealed  religion  which  all  modern  mind- 
movements  contain,  at  least  implicitly. 

*  Benson,  R.  H.:  A  Book  of  Essays;  essay  on  "Christian  Science,"  p.  17. 


CHAPTER  III 

THE  TRUE  ORIGIN   OP   CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE 

Christian  Science,  alone  among  all  modem  mind-cults,  lays 
claim  to  an  extraordinary,  not  to  say  supernatural,  origin. 
It  assumes  the  mask  of  a  new  religious  revelation;  it  claims 
to  be  the  revival  of  original  Christianity,  the  result  of  a  divine 
inspiration.  This  claim  has  probably  been  the  most  powerful 
contributing  cause  to  its  success.  Had  Mrs.  Eddy  been  con- 
tent with  an  appeal  to  experience  and  science,  she  would  have 
remained  the  butt  of  a  good-natured  and  fun-loving  public ;  but 
when  she  began  to  speak  as  one  having  authority,  she  gathered 
around  herself  a  handful  of  followers  who  rapidly  increased  in 
number.  Thus  was  laid  the  foundation  of  that  organization 
whose  rapid  progress  and  widespread  ramifications  astonish  us 
today. 

Nothing  seems  to  be  quite  as  easy  as  to  launch  a  new  re- 
ligion. Garb  any  idea,  be, it  ever  so  fantastic,  in  the  mantle 
of  religion  and  it  is  assured  of  a  following.  Men  may  revile 
religion,  even  resent  its  intrusion,  and  chafe  under  its  restraints, 
but  quite  indifferent  to  it  they  seldom  are.  Deep  down  in  their 
hearts,  often  unacknowledged,  and  oftener  unappreciated,  there 
slumbers  that  mysterious  impulse  to  worship  which  craves  to 
be  satisfied.  At  the  same  time  the  average  man  is  very  human : 
actual  needs  and  wants  take  up  by  far  the  largest  share  of 
his  thoughts  and  aspirations.  To  possess  and  enjoy  the  good 
things  of  life,  to  increase  his  worldly  prestige  and  influence, 
to  get  beyond  the  range  of  want,  this,  it  would  almost  seem,  is 
the  sole  goal  of  his  desires.  It  is  only  religion  that  imposes 
restraints  on  these  his  material  pursuits.  St.  Paul's  classical 
description  of  the  interior  struggle  between  sin  and  the  soul, 
with  the  latter  often  worsted  in  the  conflict,  remains  universally 
true.  Now  if,  by  any  possibility,  the  interests  of  religion  can 
be  made  to  square  with  those  of  nature,  if  the  wide  gulf  \yhich 

35 


36  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

is  commonly  supposed  to  exist  between  religion  and  world- 
liness  can  be  shown  to  be  nothing  but  an  illusion,  and  if  to  be 
religious-minded  means  to  be  worldly-prosperous,  this  recon- 
ciliation of  the  two  men  in  us  must  greatly  attract  such  as 
formerly  groaned  under  their  incompatibility.  Mrs.  Eddy's 
religion  offers  such  a  combination. 

Mrs.  Eddy  may  never  have  analyzed  the  elements  of  her 
success.  She  cannot  have  foreseen  and  foreordained  all  that  she 
accomplished.  To  let  now  the  light  of  later  developments  play 
on  the  origin  of  her  institutions  and  to  explain  this  origin 
in  the  light  of  subsequent  history  is  to  misread  the  trend  of 
events.  Mrs.  Eddy  had  no  wide  visions,  no  definite  and  pre- 
arranged plan.  If  she  succeeded,  it  was  not  that  she  unflinch- 
ingly pursued  a  set  goal,  to  be  reached  through  a  series  of  im- 
portant steps,  but  because,  her  vision  being  limited,  she  bent 
her  heart  and  soul  on  an  immediate  goal,  which,  when  reached, 
served  as  a  stepping  stone  to  further  projects.  Oftentimes  she 
would  follow  rather  than  lead ;  she  would  swim  with  the  current ; 
she  would  adapt  herself  to  that  daily  conflict  which  was  so 
characteristic  of  her  active  life.  When  necessary,  she  would 
retrace  her  steps,  and,  when  a  new  opportunity  opened,  she 
would  advance  with  renewed  zest.  The  precise  form  that  Chiis- 
tian  Science  has  taken  was  largely  determined  by  circumstances. 

But  back  of  all  her  scheming  lay  the  fundamental  conceit 
that  she,  Mrs.  Eddy,  had  rediscovered  primitive  Christianity; 
that  hers  was  a  mission  parallel  to  that  of  Christ  and  of  the 
prophets  of  old;  that  her  message  contained  a  new,  a  most 
perfect  revelation  graciously  granted  by  God  to  the  people  of 
the  present  age. 

"In  the  year  1866,"  she  writes,  "I  discovered  the  Christ 
Science,  or  divine  laws  of  Life,  and  named  it  Christian  Sci- 
ence. God  had  been  graciously  fitting  me  during  many  years 
for  the  reception  of  a  final  revelation  of  the  absolute  divine 
Principle  of  scientific  being  and  healing.  This  apodictical 
Principle  points  to  the  revelation  of  Immanuel,  'God  with 
us,'  the  sovereign  ever-presence  delivering  the  children  of 
men  from  every  ill  that  flesh  is  heir  to."  ^ 

*Eddy:   Science  and  Health  (351  ed.),  p.  107. 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  37 

Christian  Science  is  deeply  rooted  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  per- 
sonal experiences.  Her  own  personality  occupies  in  her  work 
almost  as  great  a  prominence  as  that  of  Christ  in  the  estab- 
lishment of  Christianity.  Mrs.  Eddy  copied  well,  and  if  at 
times  she  overshot  the  mark,  she  always  had  enough  practical 
sense  to  explain  away,  before  it  could  do  any  lasting  harm, 
whatever  was  too  offensive  to  her  friendly  critics.  Mrs.  Eddy, 
of  set  purpose,  surrounded  her  life  with  a  supernatural  sheen. 
Under  her  pen  the  most  trivial  circumstances  took  on  a  brilliant 
hue.  New  incidents  were  invented  to  increase  the  glory  of 
"the  discoverer  and  founder  of  Christian  Science."  Every  pre- 
caution was  taken  that  her  name  should  not  be  forgotten,  or 
obscured.  This  process  of  self-glorification,  which  went  on 
merrily  whenever  feasible,  took  an  upward  jump  with  the  found- 
ing of  the  Journal  of  Christian  Science  in  1883,  and  reached  a 
climax,  in  1889,  with  the  publication  of  that  fairy-tale  auto- 
biography, entitled  Retrospection  and  Introspection,  and  of 
that  presumptuous  production,  in  1893,  known  as  Christ  and 
Christmas,  at  which  even  Christian  Scientists  were  scandalized 
to  such  a  degree  that  Mrs.  Eddy  temporarily  suppressed  it.^ 

To  come  to  some  detailed  illustrations  of  these  statements, 
let  us  begin  at  the  beginning  and  learn  something  of  Mrs. 
Eddy's  entrance  into  this  world.  In  the  days  of  her  destitu- 
tion, before  success  had  smiled  on  her,  Mrs.  Eddy  related  how 
she  had  been  born  into  the  world  an  unwelcome  child,  and  how 
every  man's  hand  had  been  against  her.  But  the  wheel  of 
fortune  turned,  and  with  it  also  the  version  of  her  birth.  Now 
the  legend  went  that  Mrs.  Baker,  her  mother,  had  **felt  as  if 
all  the  vital  forces  of  the  world  had  united  in  her,  and  she 
knew  that  she  was  to  bring  forth  a  prodigy."  ^ 

*  "In  1893  Mrs.  Eddy  published  Christ  and  Christmas,  an  illustrated 
poem,  which  she  afterwards  temporarily  suppressed,  because  the  pictures 
were  displeasing  to  many  people.  One  picture  represents  Jesus  Christ  stand- 
ing beside  a  big,  black,  upholstered  coffin,  raising  to  life  an  emaciated 
woman.  Another  represents  a  woman,  strangely  like  Mrs.  Eddy's  author- 
ized photographs  in  appearance,  standing  at  a  bedside  and  raising  a  pros- 
trate form  while  a  great  star  burns  above  her  head.  In  another,  Christ  is 
represented  as  hand  in  hand  with  a  woman  who  bears  a  tablet,  inscribed 
Christian  Science.  Mrs.  Eddy  wrote  the  text  of  this  grim  gift-book,  and  a 
fly-leaf  accredits  the  pictures  to  Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy  and  James  F.  Gil- 
man,  artists."    Milmine:  op,  cit.,  p.  418. 

^Ihid.,  p.  415. 


38  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Mary  Baker,  the  future  Mrs.  Eddy,  is  pictured  by  eye- 
witnesses as  a  neurotic  child,  endowed  with  an  ugly,  selfish, 
domineering  and  unmanageable  temper,  yet  capable  of  the 
most  winning  ways  and  manners.  Constitutionally  and  tem- 
peramentally unfit  for  any  protracted  work,  seeing  that  she  was 
subject  to  frequent  fainting  spells  that  threatened  her  life 
more  than  once,  she  attended  school  rarely  and  received  but 
the  scantiest  common  school  education.  This  little  creditable 
fact  is  thus  transformed  into  something  quite  different  by  Mrs. 
Eddy  who  writes  late  in  life : 

"My  father  was  taught  to  believe  that  my  brain  was  too 
large  for  my  body  and  so  kept  me  much  out  of  school,  but 
I  gained  book  knowledge  with  far  less  labor  than  is  usually 
requisite.  At  ten  years  of  age  I  was  as  familiar  with  Lind- 
ley  Murray's  Grammar  as  with  the  Westminster  Catechism; 
and  the  latter  I  had  to  repeat  every  Sunday.  My  favorite 
studies  were  Natural  Philosophy,  Logic,  and  Moral  Science. 
From  my  brother  Albert  I  received  lessons  in  the  ancient 
tongues,  Hebrew,  Greek,  and  Latin." 

Fortunately  for  this  precocious  child,  who  might  later 
on  have  been  called  upon  to  give  proof  of  this  vast  activity  and 
learning,  all  her  knowledge  suddenly  vanished. 

"After  my  discovery  of  Christian  Science,  most  of  the 
knowledge  I  had  gleaned  from  schoolbooks  vanished  like  a 
dream.  Learni/ng  was  so  illumined  that  grammar  mas 
eclipsed.  Etymology  was  divine  history,  voicing  the  idea  of 
God  in  man's  origin  and  signification.  Syntax  was  spiritual 
order  and  unity.  Prosody,  the  song  of  angels,  and  no  earthly 
or  inglorious  theme."  ^ 

With  a  similar  disregard  of  truth  Mrs.  Eddy  writes  of  her 
earliest  religious  experiences: 

"From  my  very  childhood  I  was  impelled  by  a  hunger  and 
!        thirst  after  divine  things — a  desire  for  something  higher  and 

*Cf.  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  18.  "Mrs.  Eddy's  schoolmates  are  not  able  to 
reconcile  her  story  with  their  own  recollections.  They  declare  frankly  that 
they  do  not  believe  Albert  Baker  taught  her  Hebrew,  Greek,  and  Latin.  He 
entered  college,  when  Mary  was  nine,  and  left  home  when  she  was 
thirteen.  .  .  .  They  insist  that  Mary's  education  was  finished  when  she 
reached  long  division  in  the  district  school." 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  B9 

better  than  matter,  and  apart  from  it — to  seek  diligently  for 
the  knowledge  of  God  as  the  one  great  and  ever-present  relief 
from  human  woe.  The  first  spontaneous  motion  of  Truth 
and  Love  acting  through  Christian  Science  on  my  roused 
consciousness  banished  at  once  and  forever  the  fundamental 
error  of  faith  in  things  material ;  for  this  trust  is  the  unseen 
sin,  the  unknown  foe,  the  heart's  untamed  desire  which  break- 
eth  the  divine  commandments."  ^ 

Quite  different  is  the  picture  drawn  for  us  by  Miss  Milmine. 

"It  was  an  age,"  she  writes,  "when  languishing  manners 
were  fashionable.  As  a  little  girl  even,  Mary  Baker  adopted 
and  exaggerated  that  pose.  Her  behavior  was  mincing  and 
artificial,  and  by  contrast  it  stood  out  in  that  rather  rough 
and  primitive  community.  Strong  in  the  memory  of  the  old 
inhabitants  is  her  appearance  at  Church.  She  hardly  ever 
entered  until  the  rest  of  the  congregation  were  seated.  Then 
she  tripped  in,  dressed  a  little  conspicuously,  but  always  in 
taste — a  picture  of  fashionable  beauty  which  made  strangers 
and  visitors  stare.  These  baits  lured  the  village  boys ;  and  at 
church  festivals  all  the  young  farmers  were  at  her  feet."  ^ 

True  to  her  purpose  of  giving  to  her  life  the  appearance 
of  a  special  divine  protection,  Mrs.  Eddy  relates  two  other 
incidents,  calculated  to  remind  us  of  the  Biblical  accounts  of 
Samuel's  vocation,  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  the  twelve-year-old 
child  Jesus,  on  the  other.  Like  the  little  Samuel,  she  fre- 
quently heard  (so  Mrs.  Eddy  tells  us)  a  voice  distinctly  call- 
ing her.  Her  mother,  at  last,  instructed  her  to  reply  in  the 
words  of  Samuel,  "Speak,  Lord,  for  thy  servant  heareth." 
"When  the  call  came  again,"  Mrs.  Eddy  continued,  "I  did 
answer  in  the  words  of  Samuel ;  but  never  again  to  the  material 
senses  was  that  mysterious  call  repeated."  ^ 

So  again  like  the  child  Jesus  who,  at  the  age  of  twelve,  sat 
among  the  doctors  "hearing  them  and  asking  them  questions," 
Mary  Baker,  at  the  age  of  twelve,  when  (according  to  her  own 
account)  she  was  admitted  to  the  Tilton  Congregation  Church, 
had  her  dispute,  and  this  with  her  pastor,  "an  old-school  ex- 

^  Retrospection,  p.  37. 

'Milmine,  o'p.  cit.,  McClure's  Magazine,  Vol.  XXVIII.     (January,  1907), 
p.  235. 
*  Retrospection,  p.  10.  , 


40  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

pounder  of  the  strictest  Presbyterian  doctrines,"  who  was 
"apparently  as  eager  to  have  unbelievers  in  these  dogmas  lost, 
as  he  was  to  have  elect  believers  converted."  The  subject 
of  the  discussion  was  that  abstruse  doctrine  of  "Unconditional 
Election  or  Predestination"  which  has  tried  the  intellectual 
acumen  of  more  than  one  staid  and  learned  divine.  "So  per- 
turbed was  I,"  Mrs.  Eddy  tells  us,  "by  the  thoughts  aroused 
by  this  erroneous  doctrine  that  the  family  doctor  was  sum- 
moned and  pronounced  me  stricken  with  fever."  Mary's  mother 
wisely  induced  her  to  pray,  whereupon  "a  soft  glow  of  in- 
effable joy  came  over  her,"  and  "the  horrible  decree  of  Pre- 
destination" forever  lost  its  hold  on  her.  But  she  still  had  to 
stand  the  test  of  a  rigid  examination  prior  to  her  admission 
into  the  Church  and,  of  course,  spoke  so  earnestly  "that  even 
the  oldest  Church  members  wept,"  and  even  the  good  clergy- 
man's heart  melted,  and  he  received  her  into  their  communion, 
and  her  protest  with  her.^ 

These  narratives  must  be  read  in  the  light  of  the  following 
facts:  (1)  Mary  Baker  was  seventeen,  not  twelve,  years  old 
when  she  joined  the  Church  at  Tilton,  as  the  authentic  records 
of  the  Church  show;  (2)  the  unsupported  claim  of  hearing 
voices  and  of  disputing  the  official  Calvinistic  teaching  of  his 
pastor  on  exactly  the  same  doctrine  at  exactly  the  same  age 
was  made  shortly  before  Mrs.  Eddy  wrote  by  one  of  her  con- 
temporaries, a  spiritist  and  a  quack,  the  notorious  Andrew 
Jackson  Davis,  the  supposed  author  of  The  Magic  Staff  (1826- 
1910). 2 

Mrs.  Eddy  by  thus  ennobling  her  childhood  tried  to  render 
more  credible  her  claim  of  a  divine  origin  for  her  textbook. 
These  embellishments  of  her  earlier  life,  however,  were  an 
afterthought.  So  little  certain  was  Mrs.  Eddy  as  to  the  date 
when  this  revelation  was  vouchsafed  her,  that  she  has  given 
at  various  times  various  dates.  If  the  year  1866  finally  tri- 
umphed it  was  because  it  had  over  others  certain  advantages 
which  rendered  it  more  suitable  both  for  defense  and  offense. 
For  Quimby  was  dead  at  that  time,  and  her  fall  on  a  slippery 

*Eddy;  Retrospection,  pp.  12-15. 
»Cf.  Podmore:  op.  cit.,  p.  221, 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  41 

sidewalk  afforded  a  spectacular  setting  for  this  occasion.  Un- 
fortunately for  Mrs.  Eddy,  it  was  impossible  to  expunge  her 
earlier  printed  statements  which  give  the  same  honor  to  three 
other  years,  1844,  1853,  and  1864  respectively. 

In  the  first  edition  of  Science  and  Health  (1875)  this  dis- 
covery is  placed  in  the  year  1864:  "We  made  our  first  dis- 
covery that  Science  mentally  applied  would  heal  the  sick  in 
1864  and  since  then  have  tested  it  on  ourselves  and  hundreds 
of  others  and  never  found  it  to  fail  to  prove  the  statement 
herein  made  of  it."  Eight  years  later  she  said  in  a  letter  to  the 
Boston  Post:  "We  made  our  first  experiments  in  mental  heal- 
ing about  1853  when  we  were  convinced  that  mind  had  a  science 
which,  if  understood,  would  heal  all  disease."  Finally,  in  1887 
she  wrote  in  the  Christian  Science  Jowrnal:  "As  long  ago  as 
1844  I  was  convinced  that  mortal  mind  produced  all  disease, 
and  that  the  various  medical  systems  were  in  no  proper  sense 
scientific.  In  1862  when  I  first  visited  Mr.  Quimby,  I  was 
proclaiming  to  druggists,  spiritualists  and  mesmerists  that 
science  must  govern  all  healing."  ^ 

From  1866  on,  the  history  of  this  "revelation"  and  "dis- 
covery" is  easy  to  follow.  Mr.  Quimby  had  died  early  in  that 
year  (January  16).  Two  weeks  later  occurred,  at  Lynn, 
Massachusetts,  that  fall  from  which  Mrs.  Eddy  dates  her  dis- 
covery. On  that  occasion,  to  quote  her  own  words,  she  suf- 
fered "an  injury  that  neither  medicine  nor  surgery  could  reach." 
Her  "immediate  recovery"  from  the  effects  of  that  injury  was 
"the  falling  apple"  that  led  her  "to  the  discovery  how  to  be 
well  herself,  and  how  to  make  others  so."  ^  Mrs.  Eddy's  narra- 
tive places  this  accident,  in  itself  real  and  serious  enough,  in 
a  false  light.  She  did  not  recover  immediately,  but  was  under 
the  physician's  care  from  February  1  to  February  13.  Nor 
did  the  doctor  pronounce  her  case  hopeless,  as  is  witnessed  to 
by  the  following  affidavit,  based  on  his  written  notes : 

"When  I  left  her  (Mrs.  Patterson)  on  the  thirteenth  of 
February,  she  seemed  to  have  recovered  from  the  disturbance 
caused  by  the  accident,  and  to  be  practically  in  her  normal 

*  Milmine :  op.  cit.,  p.  77. 

'Retrospection,  p.  28.  ^ 


42  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

condition.  I  did  not  at  any  time  declare,  or  believe,  that 
there  was  no  hope  for  Mrs.  Patterson's  recovery,  or  that  she 
was  in  a  critical  condition,  and  did  not  at  any  time  say,  or 
believe,  that  she  had  but  three,  or  any  other  limited,  number 
of  days  to  live.  Mrs.  Patterson  did  not  suggest,  or  say,  or 
pretend,  or  in  any  way  whatever,  intimate,  that,  on  the  third 
or  any  other  day  of  her  said  illness,  she  had  miraculously 
recovered  or  been  healed,  or  that,  discovering  or  perceiving 
the  truth  of  the  power  employed  by  Christ  to  heal  the  sick, 
she  had,  by  it,  been  restored  to  health."  ^ 

Two  weeks  after  the  accident  Mrs.  Eddy  herself  wrote  to 
her  friend  Mr.  J.  A.  Dresser : 

"Two  weeks  ago  I  fell  on  the  sidewalk  and  struck  my  back 
on  the  ice  and  was  taken  up  for  dead,  came  to  consciousness 
amid  a  storm  of  vapors  from  cologne,  chloroform,  ether,  cam- 
pl^or,  etc.,  but  to  find  myself  the  helpless  cripple  I  was  be- 
fore I  saw  Dr.  Quimby.  The  physician  attending  said  I  had 
taken  the  last  step  I  ever  should,  but  in  two  days  I  got  out 
of  my  bed  aloTie  and  will  walk ;  but  yet  I  confess  I  am  fright- 
ened, and  out  of  that  nervous  heat  my  friends  are  forming, 
spite  of  me,  the  terrible  spinal  affection  from  which  I  have  suf- 
fered so  long  and  hopelessly.  .  .  .  Now,  can't  j^ou  help  me?  I 
believe  you  can.  I  write  this  with  this  feeling:  I  think  that 
I  could  help  another  in  my  condition  if  they  had  not  placed 
their  intelligence  in  matter.  This  I  have  not  done,  and  yet 
I  am  slowly  failing.  Won't  you  write  me  if  you  will  under- 
take for  me  if  I  can  get  to  you?"  ^ 

At  the  time  this  letter  was  written,  Mrs.  Patterson  still 
was  leaning  for  relief  on  Mr.  Julius  Dresser  as  the  probable 
successor  of  Dr.  Quimby.  Her  hopes  lay  in  Quimby's  system. 
Just  to  induce  Mr.  Dresser  not  to  abandon  her  in  her  distress, 
she  suggests:  "I  think  that  I  could  help  another  in  my  con- 
dition, if  they  had  not  placed  their  intelligence  in  matter." 
There  is  in  all  this  no  sign  of  a  new  discovery,  still  less  any 
indication  of  a  new  revelation.     None  the  less,  it  is  quite  prob- 

*Cf.  Milmine:  op.cit.,  p.  87. 

*  Ibid.,  p.  85.    It  must  be  remembered  that  at  this  time  Quimby  was  dead, 
and  Mrs.  Eddy  looked  upon  Mr.  Dresser  as  his  logical  successor. 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  43 

able  that,  during  the  course  of  this  year,  Mrs.  Eddy  acquires 
a  certain  independence  of  action,  forced  upon  her  by  the  utter 
wretchedness  of  her  life.  Her  father  is  dead;  her  husband 
deserts  her;  her  sister,  Mrs.  Tilton,  who  has  frequently  nursed 
her  with  a  mother's  care,  closes  forever  her  door  against  her. 
Her  lot  is  thrown  in  with  comparative  strangers,  on  whose 
charitableness  she  largely  depends,  and,  as  her  only  assets,  she 
possesses  what  she  knows  of  Dr.  Quimby's  art  of  healing.^ 

And  during  all  these  years  (1866-1870),  the  memory  of 
which  Mrs.  Eddy  in  the  days  of  her  prosperity  wished  to  see 
blotted  out,  she  never  attributed  the  invention  of  the  new  way 
of  healing  to  herself.  Quimby  remained  the  source  of  her  in- 
spiration as  well  as  the  topic  of  her  conversation.  She  taught 
from  his  manuscript  and  she  practiced  his  method  wherever  she 
went.  Ten  times  during  these  few  years  Mrs.  Eddy  changed 
her  residence.  She  resided  successively  at  Lynn,  Swampscott, 
East  Stoughton,  Taunton,  Amesbury,  Stoughton,  and  again  at 
Amesbury.  From  her  first  residence  she  was  evicted,  ostensibly 
because  she  could  not  pay  the  rental  of  $1.50  a  week,  but  in 
reality  because  her  presence  was  no  longer  wanted.  She  stopped 
but  a  short  time  at  the  next  two  places ;  at  her  fourth  change 
of  residence  she  met  with  a  kindly  reception  from  the  gentle 
spiritualist  Mrs.  Wheeler,  but  this  kindness  she  repaid  before 
long  with  the  most  insulting  and  abusive  language  and  con- 
duct.i 

Her  next  home  she  left  to  join  the  Crafts  at  East  Stoughton 
for  the  purpose  of  teaching  Mr.  Crafts,  a  shoe  worker,  the 

*"In  the  fall  of  1865  Mark  Baker,  Mrs.  Patterson's  father,  died,  and 
about  the  same  time  her  sister,  Mrs.  Tilton,  closed  her  door  forever  against  j  ^' 
Mrs.  Patterson.  Her  only  child,  George  Glover,  at  that  time  a  young  manj-  -' 
she  had  sent  away  in  his  childhood.  Mrs.  Patterson  was,  therefore,  for 
the  first  time  in  her  life,  practically  alone  in  the  world,  and  largely  depend- 
ent upon  herself  for  support.  Untrained  in  any  kind  of  paid  work,  she 
fell  back  upon  the  favors  of  her  friends  or  chance  acquaintances,  living 
precariously  upon  their  bounty,  and  obliged  to  go  from  house  to  house,  as 
one  family  after  another  wearied  of  her."    Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  108. 

^Cf.  Milmine,  o'p.  cit.,  pp.  108-131.  "Mrs.  Patterson  was  soon  after  this 
requested  to  leave  the  Wheeler  house  and  did  so.  Mrs.  Wheeler  received 
nothing  in  payment  for  Mrs.  Patterson's  board.  When  Mrs.  Wheeler  asked 
Mrs.  Patterson  for  a  settlement,  Mrs.  Patterson  replied  to  the  effect  that 
she  had  'treated'  a  wounded  finger  for  Mr.  Wheeler  and  that  this  service 
was  equivalent  to  what  she  had  received  from  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Whe^er  iu 
board,  lodging,  etc."     (p.  110). 


44  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

science  of  mental  healing.  It  was  not  long  before  she  tried  to 
induce  Mr.  Crafts  to  obtain  a  divorce  from  his  wife,  and,  as 
this  attempt  failed,  she  had,  of  course,  to  leave.  From  her  next 
home  she  had  literally  to  be  ejected,  as  she  refused  to  comply 
with  the  command  to  go.^  After  that  she  enjoyed  the  hos- 
pitality of  the  Wentworths  in  Stoughton  for  about  two  years. 
As  in  the  case  of  Mr.  Crafts,  so  here  she  would  have  liked  to 
break  up  the  family  circle,  this  time  by  inducing  Mrs.  Went- 
worth  to  leave  husband  and  family  in  order  to  practice  with  her 
"the  Quimby  treatment."  Ordered  to  leave,  she  chose  for  her 
departure  a  day  when  everybody  was  absent,  and  when  the 
members  of  the  family  returned  they  were  shocked  to  find  the 
contents  of  the  room  she  had  occupied  maliciously  damaged.^ 
It  is  to  this  period  of  strife  and  stress  that  dates  the  very 
natural  origin  of  the  book  which  has  been  accepted  with  so 
much  reverence  by  an  overcredulous  multitude.  Up  to  then, 
Mrs.  Eddy  had  used  in  her  teaching  and  practice  only  the  copy 
she  had  made  from  Quimby's  Manuscript.  In  Stoughton  Mrs. 
Eddy  wrote  a  preface  to  it,  signed  Mary  M.  Glover,  and  in- 
troduced in  it  slight  changes  with  a  few  additions.  This  preface 
was  later  on  incorporated  in  the  text,  and  the  original  title  page 
reading  Extracts  from  P.  P.  Quimhy^s  Writings  was  omitted. 
Thus  transformed,  the  manuscript  was  named  The  Science  of 
Man,  or,  TJie  Principle  "mhich  Controls  Matter.  This  produc- 
tion was  copyright  in  1872,  but  was  not  published  until  1876, 
under  the  title  The  Science  of  Man,  hy  Which  the  Sick  are 
Healed,  Embracing  Questions  and  Answers  in  Moral,  Scieiice 
arranged  for  the  Learner  hy  Mrs.  Mary  Baker  Glover.    Grad- 

^Milmine,  op.  cit.,  p.  117.  Mary  Ellis  Bartlett  testified:  "My  father  com- 
manded Mrs.  Glover  to  leave,  and  when  she  steadfastly  refused  to  go,  he 
had  her  trunk  dragged  from  her  room  and  set  it  outside  the  door,  and  when 
she  was  outside,  he  closed  the  door  and  locked  it.  I  have  often  heard  my 
father  describe  this  event  in  detail,  and  I  have  heard  him  say  that  he  had 
never  expected  in  his  whole  life  to  be  obliged  to  put  a  woman  into  the 
street." 

''Ibid.,  p.  124.  "We  found  every  breadth  of  matting  slashed  up  through 
the  middle  apparently  with  some  sharp  instrument.  We  also  found 
the  feather  bed  all  cut  to  pieces.  We  opened  the  door  of  a  closet. 
On  the  floor  was  a  pile  of  newspapers  almost  entirely  consumed.  On  top 
of  these  papers  was  a  shovelful  of  dead  coals.  These  had  evidently  been 
left  by  the  last  occupant.  The  only  reasons  that  they  had  not  set  the 
house  on  fire  evidently  were  because  the  closet  door  had  been  shut,  and  the 
air  of  the  closet  was  so  dead."     (Affidavit  by  H.  T.  Wentworth.) 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  45 

ually  two  other  treatises  were  written,  entitled  respectively 
Scientific  Treatise  on  Mortality/  as  taught  hy  Mrs.  M.  B.  Glover 
and  Soul's  Inquiries  of  Man.  "At  first,  however,  Mrs.  Glover 
gave  Quimby  credit  for  the  authorship  of  the  three  manuscripts, 
even  for  the  two  which  seem  to  have  been  partly  her  own  com- 
position." ^  An  important  change  was  introduced  in  the  spring 
of  1872  when  as  a  result  of  her  break  with  Richard  Kennedy, 
she  discontinued  manipulation,  which  Quimby,  without  putting 
any  stock  in  it,  had  tolerated.  She  ever  afterwards  denounced 
it  as  the  sign  and  badge  of  mesmerism.  Science  and  Health 
itself  came  from  the  press  in  1876.  The  history  of  this  book 
includes,  therefore, 

"1.  The  writing  of  a  signed  preface  and  the  amending  of 
the  original  Quimby  manuscript. 

"2.     The  incoi-porating  of  this  preface  in  the  text. 

"3.  The  composition  of  a  second  manuscript,  partly  her 
own,  from  which  she  was  able  to  teach  successfully. 

"4.     The  discontinuation  of  manipulation  in  treatment. 

"5.  The  belief,  fostered  by  her  students,  that  her  interpre- 
tation of  the  Quimby  manuscript  was  far  beyond  the 
manuscript  itself  in  scope  and  understanding. 

"6.  The  writing  of  the  book  Science  arid  Health,  begun  in 
the  later  sixties  and  finished  in  1875,  in  which  Mrs. 
Glover  undoubtedly  added  much  extraneous  matter  to 
Quimbyism  and  developed  self-confidence  by  presenting 
ideas  of  her  own."  ^ 

This  book,  which  Mrs.  Eddy  in  her  autobiography  styles 
The  Precious  Volume,  was,  therefore,  in  the  making  from  the 
year  1866,  when  Mrs.  Eddy  claims  the  great  discovery  to  have 
taken  place,  till  1875,  when  the  book  was  published  at  the 
expense  of  two  students  who  were  found  willing  to  advance  the 
money  for  its  publication.^  During  all  these  years  Mrs.  Eddy 
was   continually  engaged  in  writing  and  rewriting  what  she 

^Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  163. 

^Ihid.,  p.  166. 

^  "Mr.  Barry  and  Miss  Newhall  lost  over  fifteen  hundred  dollars  on  the 
edition,  and  Mr.  SpofFord  paid  out  five  hundred  dollars  of  his  own  money 
for  advertising  and  personal  expenses,  besides  giving  his  time  for  several 
months.  Mrs.  Eddy  made  no  effort  to  reimburse  them."  Milmine,  in 
McC lure's  Mayazine,  Vol.  XXIX,  p.  342, 


46 


Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 


sometimes  called  her  Bible,  and  yet,  "even  after  her  eight  years* 
struggle  with  her  copy,  the  book  as  printed  in  1875  is  hardly 
more  than  a  tangle  of  words  and  theories,  faulty  in  grammar 
and  construction,  and  singularly  vague  and  contradictory  in  its 
statements."  ^  It  contained  eight  chapters  which  in  the  course 
of  its  many  revisions  increased  to  eighteen.  To  show  the  meta- 
morphosis which  this  singular  book  "of  revelations"  underwent, 
I  here  reproduce  in  parallel  columns  the  table  of  contents  of  the 
first  and  of  a  later  edition,  the  numbers  in  brackets  being  in- 
serted to  facilitate  comparison. 


First  Edition 

Later  Editions 

1. 

Natural  Science  (6) 

1. 

Prayer  (5) 

2. 

Imposition    and    Demon- 

2. 

Atonement    and   Eucha- 

stration (4  and  5) 

rist  (5) 

3. 

Spirit  and  Matter  (10) 

3. 

Marriage  (6) 

4. 

Creation  (9) 

4. 

Christian     Science     and 

5. 

Prayer  and  Atonement  (1 

Spiritualism 

and  2) 

5. 

Animal  Magnetism 

6. 

Marriage  (3) 

6. 

Science,  Theology,  Medi- 

7. 

Physiology  (7) 

cine  (1) 

8. 

Healing  the  Sick  (12) 

7. 

Physiology  (7) 

8. 

Footsteps  of  Truth 

9. 

Creation  (4) 

10. 

Science  of  Being  (3) 

11. 

Some  Objections  An- 
swered 

12. 

Christian  Science  Prac- 
tice (8) 

13. 

Teaching  Christian  Sci- 
ence 

14. 

Recapitulation 

KEY  TO  THE  SCRIPTURES 

15. 

Genesis 

16. 

The  Apocalypse 

17. 

Glossary 

18.     Fruitage 

If  we  are  asked  what  the  relations  are  between  Mrs.  Eddy's 
"textbook"  and  Quimby's  essays,  we  can  state  in  fairness  that 
^Milnaine:  op.  cit.,  p.  178. 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  4^ 

Mrs.  Eddy's  work  is  her  own,  though  its  basic  ideas,  its  inspira- 
tion and  some  of  its  phrases  are  undoubtedly  borrowed  from 
Quimby.  What  the  famous  Quimby  controversy  has  brought 
to  light  is  not  that  there  is  nothing  original  in  Mrs.  Eddy's 
work,  but  that  there  is  nothing  essentially  new  in  her  system, 
nothing  that  might  be  called  her  discovery  (except  perhaps  her 
concept  of  malicious  animal  magnetism),  nothing  that  could 
justify  Mrs.  Eddy's  claim  to  be  a  divinely  inspired  teacher  for 
the  present  age.    In  Miss  Milmine's  words : 

"The  basic  ideas  of  the  book  and  much  of  the  terminology 
were,  of  course,  borrowed  from  the  Quimby  papers  which 
Mrs.  Glover  had  carried  reverently  about  with  her  since  1864, 
and  from  w^hich  she  had  taught  his  doctrines.  But  in  the 
elaboration  and  amplification  of  the  Quimby  theory,  Mrs. 
Glover  introduced  some  totally  new  propositions  and  many 
an  ingenious  argument."  ^ 

If,  then,  Mrs.  Eddy  has  been  a  loser  through  this  contro- 
versy, it  is  not  so  much  because  of  what  she  borrowed  from 
Quimby,  but  because  of  her  unwillingness  to  admit  her  obliga- 
tion to  him,  an  unwillingness  which  had  its  roots  in  her  pre- 
tensions to  a  divine  revelation. 

The  first  edition,  despite  the  untiring  efforts  of  Mrs.  Eddy 
and  one  of  her  students,  Mr.  Spofford,  to  make  it  known,  was 
far  from  creating  a  widespread  interest  and  from  being  a  finan- 
cial success. 

"Mrs.  Glover  and  Mr.  Spofford  advertised  the  book  by 
means  of  handbills  and  through  the  newspapers,  printing 
testimonials  of  the  wonderful  cures  made  by  the  application 
of  the  Science,  and  urging  all  to  buy  the  book  which  would 
tell  them  all  about  it.  Copies  were  sent  to  the  leading  New 
England  newspapers  for  review,  accompanied  by  a  request  to 
the  editors  to  print  nothing  about  the  book,  if  a  favorable 
notice  could  not  be  given.  This  request  was  respected  by 
some  of  the  papers,  but  others  criticized  the  book  severely,  or 
referred  to  it  flippantly.  Copies  were  also  sent  to  the  Univer- 
sity of  Heidelberg,  to  Thomas  Carlyle,  and  to  several  noted 

^Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  178.     Cf.  on  the  Quimby  controversy,  pp.  71-104, 
162  fF.   Dresser's  History,  pp.  97-125. 


48  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

theologians  and  literary  men.  But  the  book  made  no  stir, 
and,  outside  of  the  little  band  of  devoted  Christian  Scientists, 
its  advent  was  unobserved."  ^ 

Other  ways  and  means  to  bring  it  before  the  public  had  to 
be  devised.  Mr.  Spofford  was  induced  to  give  up  his  practice 
and  devote  all  his  time  to  further  the  sale  of  the  book,  paying 
out  of  his  own  pocket  for  advertising  and  personal  expenses 
five  hundred  dollars  which  were  never  reimbursed.  Meanwhile 
Mrs.  Eddy  was  scheming  to  extend  her  influence.  In  a  letter 
dated  April,  1877,  she  urged  her  partner  "to  try  to  get  students 
into  the  field  as  practitioners,"  and  thus,  she  continued,  "heal- 
ing will  sell  the  book  and  introduce  the  Science  more  than  aught 
but  my  lecturing  can  do.  Send  the  name  of  any  you  can  get 
to  study  for  the  purpose  of  practicing,  and  in  six  months  or 
thereabouts  we  will  have  them  in  the  field  helping  you."  ^ 

In  July,  1877,  Mr.  Spoff^ord  closed  out  the  first  edition  and 
paid  over  the  money  which  he  received  to  George  H.  Barry  and 
Elizabeth  M.  Newhall,  who  had  furnished  the  money  to  publish 
it.  But  long  before  this  Mrs.  Eddy  had  busied  herself  with 
the  preparation  of  a  second  edition.  She  became  enraged  at 
Mr.  Spoff^ord  for  not  turning  the  receipts  over  to  herself, 
classed  him  with  the  mesmerists  and  had  him  expelled  in  Jan- 
uary, 1878.^    She  went  further. 

"The  second  edition  which  Mr.  Spoff^ord  had  labored  upon 
and  helped  to  prepare,  was  hastily  revised  and  converted  into 
a  running  attack  upon  him,  hurried  to  press,  labeled  Volume 
II,  and  sent  panting  after  Science  and  Health,  which  was  not 
labeled  Volume  I,  and  which  had  already  been  in  the  world 
three  years.  This  odd  little  brown  book,  with  the  ark  and 
troubled  waters  on  the  cover,  is  made  up  of  a  few  chapters 
snatched  from  the  1875  edition,  interlarded  with  vigorous 
rhetoric  such  as  the  following  apostrophe  to  Spoff^ord: 

"  ^Behold !  thou  criminal  mental  marauder,  that  would 

*Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  177. 

^Ihid.,  p.  216. 

*Ihid.,  p.  233.  Mr.  Spofford  received  the  following  notice:  "Dr.  D.  H. 
Spofford  of  Newburyport  has  been  expelled  from  the  Association  of  Chris- 
tian Scientists  for  immorality  and  as  unworthy  to  be  a  member."  Immorality 
meant  disloyalty  to  Mrs.  Eddy. 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  49 

blot  out  the  sunshine  of  earth,  that  would  sever  friends,  de- 
stroy virtue,  put  out  Truth,  and  murder  in  secret  the  inno- 
cent, befouling  the  track  with  the  trophies  of  thy  guilt, — I 
say.  Behold  the  "cloud  no  bigger  than  a  man's  hand"  already 
rising  in  the  horizon  of  Truth,  to  pour  down  upon  thy  guilty 
head  the  hailstones  of  doom.'  "  -^ 

In  all  this  there  is  little  enough  that  savors  of  the  super-' 
natural,  but  even  as  a  natural  means  for  securing  health  but 
little  confidence  can  be  placed  in  this  discovery,  seeing  that  the 
discoverer,  at  the  very  time  when  she  offered  health  to  others, 
was  herself  suffering  intensely  from  ill-health.  The  following 
letter,  written  about  this  time  to  her  ephemeral  friend  Spofford, 
whom  she  still  called  familiarly  Harry  (Harrison),  is  typical  of 
her  perturbed  state  of  mind. 

"Boston,  April  14,  1877. 

"Dear  Student  :  This  hour  of  my  departure  I  pick  up 
from  the  carpet  a  piece  of  paper  write  you  a  line  to  say  I 
am  at  length  driven  into  the  wilderness.  Everything  needs 
me  in  science,  my  doors  are  thronged,  the  book  lies  waiting, 
but  those  who  call  on  me  mentally  in  suffering  are  in  belief 
killing  me!  Stopping  my  work  that  none  but  me  can  do  in 
their  supreme  selfishness;  how  unlike  the  example  I  have  left 
them!  Tell  this  to  Miss  Brown,  Mr.  McLauthlen,  Mrs.  At- 
kinson, and  Miss  Norman  but  do  not  let  them  know  they  can 
call  on  me  thus  if  they  are  doing  this  ignorantly  and  if  they 
do  it  consciously  tell  McLauthlen  and  them  all  it  would  be  no 
greater  crime  for  them  to  come  directly  and  thrust  a  dagger 
into  my  heart  they  are  just  as  surely  in  belief  killing  me  and 
committing  murder. 

"The  sin  lies  at  their  door  and  for  them  to  meet  its  pen- 
alty sometime.     You  can  teach  them  better,  see  you  do  this. 

"0 !  Harry,  the  book  must  stop.  I  can  do  no  more  now 
if  ever.    They  lay  on  me  suffering  inconceivable. 

"If  the  students  will  continue  to  think  of  me  and  call  on 
me,  I  shall  at  last  defend  myself  and  this  will  be  to  cut  them 
off  from  me  utterly  in  a  spiritual  sense  by  a  bridge  they 
cannot  pass  over  and  the  effect  of  this  on  them  they  will  then 
learn. 

*  Milmine :  op.  cit.,  p.  225. 


50  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"I  will  let  you  hear  from  me  as  soon  as  I  can  bear  this 
on  account  of  my  health;  and  will  return  to  prosecute  my 
work  on  the  Book  as  soon  as  I  can  safely.  I  am  going  far 
away  and  shall  remain  until  you  will  do  your  part  and  give 
me  some  better  prospect. 

"Ever  truly, 

"Mary."  ^ 

We  have  seen  how  by  an  irony  of  fate  this  second  edition 
of  which  Mrs.  Eddy  here  speaks  so  feelingly  to  Mr.  Spoiford 
eventually  was  turned  into  a  personal  attack  on  the  same  Mr. 
Spofford  on  whom  at  this  time  Mrs.  Eddy  leaned  so  heavily. 
The  second,  as  well  as  the  first,  edition  is  now  tabooed  and  as 
far  as  possible  suppressed.  Two  other  editions  followed  and 
then  Mrs.  Eddy  decided  to  have  her  fifth  edition  revised  by 
one  who  had  been  a  Unitarian  minister,  but  had  retired  from 
the  ministry  and  devoted  himself  to  writing  and  editing.  After 
examining  the  manuscript,  Mr.  Wiggin  told  Mrs.  Eddy  "that 
he  could  do  nothing  by  merely  correcting  her  manuscript ;  that 
to  improve  it  he  would  have  largely  to  rewrite  it.  To  his  sur- 
prise, she  willingly  consented  to  this.  During  the  autumn  of 
1885  Mr.  Wiggin  occupied  himself  with  this  task,  which  Mrs. 
Eddy  carefully  supervised  to  see  that  he  did  not  in  the  least 
modify  her  views  and  that  her  favorite  phrases  were  allowed 
to  stand."  ^ 

Mr.  Wiggin  rendered  other  services  to  Mrs.  Eddy.  Though 
he  never  was  a  Christian  Scientist,  he  did  for  four  years  edi- 
torial work  for  the  Journal  of  Christian  Science,  and  did  his 
best  "to  keep  Mrs.  Eddy  from  making  herself  ridiculous,"  as  he 
himself  often  said.  Mrs.  Eddy  appreciated  his  services  and 
sometimes  she  would  slyly  remark :  "Mr.  Wiggin,  do  you  know, 
I  sometimes  believe  God  speaks  to  me  through  you."  On  one 
occasion  Mr.  Wiggin  became  even  co-author  of  Science  and 
Health:  he  persuaded  his  literary  client  to  omit  a  portion  of 
the  chapter  on  Malicious  Animal  Magnetism,  because  he  con- 
sidered it  libelous,  and  in  order  not  to  have  to  renumber  the 

^Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  214,  italics  are  Mrs.  Eddy's.    The  original  punctua- 
tion has  been  preserved. 
Ubid.,  p.  328. 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  51 

pages,  she  inserted  at  Mr.  Wiggin's  suggestion  a  sermon  he 
had  written  for  her,  cutting  it  down  to  the  required  size.  "The 
chapter  was  called  'Wayside  Hints  (Supplementary),  and  Mrs. 
Eddy  put  her  seal  upon  it  by  inserting  under  the  subject  of 
squareness  a  tribute  to  her  deceased  husband:  'We  need  good 
square  men  everywhere.  Such  a  man  was  my  late  husband, 
Dr.  Asa  G.  Eddy.'  "  ^ 

"Many  a  time,"  writes  Mr.  Peabody,  "have  I  heard  Mr. 
Wiggin  say  with  a  chuckle  of  amusement  that  it  was  a  source  of 
much  mirth  to  him  to  hear  from  time  to  time  Mrs.  Eddy's 
devotees  exclaim,  with  pious  earnestness,  that  the  chapter  he 
had  written  at  so  much  per  word  was  the  very  most  divinely- 
inspired  portion  of  the  divine  volume."  ^ 

Since  Mr.  Wiggin  was  so  closely  associated  with  Mrs.  Eddy 
and  knew  her  so  intimately,  it  will  be  interesting  to  read  part  of 
his  criticism  on  Christian  Science,  written  by  him  about  this 
time  to  an  old  college  friend  and  reproduced  in  part  by  Miss 
Milmine.  I  shall  select'  chiefly  that  section  which  applies  di- 
rectly to  Mrs.  Eddy  and  her  textbook. 

"As  for  the  High  Priestess  of  it  (of  Christian  Science)," 
he  wrote,  "...  she  is — well,  I  could  tell  you,  but  not  write. 
An  awfully  (I  use  the  word  advisedly)  smart  woman,  acute, 
shrewd,  but  not  well-read,  nor  in  any  way  learned.  What 
she  has,  as  documents  clearly  show,  she  got  from  P.  P. 
Quimby  of  Portland,  Maine,  whom  she  eulogized  after  death 
as  the  great  leader  and  her  special  teacher.  .  .  .  She  tried  to 
answer  the  charge  of  the  adoption  of  Quimby's  ideas,  and 
called  me  in  to  counsel  her  about  it;  but  her  only  answer  (in 
print)  was  that,  if  she  said  such  things  twenty  years  ago, 
she  must  have  been  under  the  influence  of  animal  magnetism, 
which  is  her  devil.  Much  more  could  I  say  if  you  were 
here.  .  .  , 

"Only  experience  can  teach  these  fanatics  (the  Christian 
Scientists),  i.  e.,  the  real  believers,  not  the  charlatans  who 
go  into  it  for  money.  ...  As  for  the  book,  if  you  have  any 
edition  since  December,  1885,  it  had  my  supervision.  Though 
now  she  is  getting  out  an  entirely  new  edition,  with  which  I 

*  Milmine :  op.  cit.,  p.  335. 

*  Peabody:  op.  cit.,  p.  68.  ,» 


52  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

have  nothing  to  do,  and  occasionlly  she  has  made  changes, 

whereof  I  did  not  know.     The  chapter  B told  you  of 

•  is  rather  fanciful,  though,  to  use  Mrs.  Eddy's  language  in 
her  last  note,  'her  friends  think  it  a  gem.'  It  is  the  one 
called  'Wayside  Hints,'  and  was  added  after  the  work  was 
not  only  in  type,  but  cast,  because  she  wished  to  take  out 
some  twenty  pages  of  diatribe  on  her  dissenters.  ...  I  do 
not  think  it  will  greatly  edify  you,  the  chapter.  As  for 
clearness,  many  Christian  Science  people  thought  her  early 
editions  much  better,  because  they  sounded  more  like  Mrs. 
Eddy.  The  truth  is,  she  does  not  care  to  have  her  paragraphs 
clear,  and  delights  in  so  expressing  herself  that  her  words  may 
have  various  readings  and  meanings.  Really  that  is  one  of 
the  tricks  of  the  trade.  You  know  sibyls  have  always  been 
thus  oracular,  to  'keep  the  word  of  promise  to  the  ear  and 
break  it  to  the  hope.' 

"Quimby  had  definite  ideas,  but  Mrs.  Eddy  has  not  under- 
stood them.  .  .  . 

"When  I  first  knew  Christian  Science,  I  wrote  a  defensive 
pamphlet  called  'Christian  Science  and  the  Bible'  (though  I 
did  not  believe  the  doctrine).  ...  I  found  fair  game  in  the 
assaults  of  orthodoxy  upon  Mrs.  Eddy,  and  support  in  the 
supematuralism  of  the  Bible;  but  I  did  not  pretend  to  give 
an  exposition  of  Christian  Science,  and  I  did  not  know  the 
old  lady  as  well  as  I  do  now. 

"No,  Swedenborg  and  all  other  such  writers,  are  sealed 
books  to  her.  She  cannot  understand  such  utterances,  and 
never  could,  but  dollars  and  cents  she  understands  thor- 
oughly. 

"Her  influence  is  wonderful.  .  .  ."  ^ 

The  space  devoted  here  to  the  composition  and  make-up 
of  Science  and  Health  is  not  excessive  considering  the  import- 
ance of  the  "textbook"  for  every  Christian  Scientist.  Mrs. 
Eddy  needed  a  divine  book  to  attain  her  end  and  she  created 
one.  On  other  points  she  might  recede;  on  this  one  she  must 
remain  firm.  For  this  purpose  she  placed  herself — ^by  innuendo 
at  least — on  a  level  with  Christ.  She  saw  herself  in  the  woman 
of  the  Apocalypse   (chapter  12),   clothed  with  the  sun,  the 

»Milmine:  op.  cit.,  pp.  337-339. 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  53 

moon  under  her  feet,  and  upon  her  head  a  crown  of  twelve  stars. 
She  writes,  apocalyptically  enough : 

"The  twelfth  chapter  of  the  Apocalypse  .  .  .  has  a  spe- 
cial suggestiveness  in  connection  with  this  nineteenth  century. 
In  the  opening  of  the  sixth  seal,  typical  of  six  thousand- 
years  since  Adam,  the  distinctive  feature  has  special  refer- 
ence to  the  present  age.  .  .  .  The  woman  in  the  Apocalypse 
is  the  vignette  which  illustrates  as  man  the  spiritual  idea  of 
God,  and  God  and  man  as  the  divine  Principle  and  divine 
idea.  ...  As  Elias  represents  the  fatherhood  of  God 
through  Jesus,  so  the  Revelator  completes  this  figure  with 
woman  as  the  spiritual  idea  or  type  of  God's  motherhood."  -^ 

Mrs.  Eddy  went  so  far  as  to  place  her  "precious  volume" 
above  the  Bible.  "Even  the  Scriptures,"  she  declares,  "gave  no 
direct  interpretation  of  the  Scientific  basis  for  demonstrating 
the  spiritual  Principle  of  healing,  until  our  Heavenly  Father 
saw  fit,  through  the  Key  to  the  Scriptures  in  Science  cund 
Health,  to  unlock  this  'mystery  of  godliness.'  "  ^ 

Mrs.  Eddy  was  evidently  doing  her  very  best  to  secure  for 
her  book,  the  fruit  of  her  tireless  industry,  the  object  of  her 
greatest  affections,  that  honor,  veneration  and  implicit  belief 
which  Protestantism  was  wont  to  bestow  on  the  Bible,  and  on 
the  Bible  alone.  She  took,  at  the  same  time,  all  necessary 
precautions  that  the  mother  should  not  be  forgotten  in  the 
growing  fame  of  the  child.  The  Church  Manuxil,  first  issued  in 
1895,  as  it  regulates  all  the  details  of  Christian  Science  church 
life,  became  the  most  eflScient  instrument  for  this  purpose. 
Whenever  any  new  emergency  arose,  a  new  by-law  was  added, 
to  which  aU  Christian  Scientists  at  once  reHgiously  bowed.  For 
by  this  time  Mrs.  Eddy  had  trained  her  vine  so  as  to  be  re- 
sponsive to  the  slightest  touch  of  her  hand.  A  set  of  by-laws, 
bearing  on  the  Textbook,  serve  the  purpose,  not  only  of  en- 
hancing the  prestige  of  the  book  and  proclaiming  the  fame  of 
its  author,  but  also  of  securing  for  it  a  ready  sale.     For  these 

*  Science  and  Health,  pp.  559-562. 

^Retrospection,  p.  47.  Cf.  Christian  Science  Journal,  November,  1885. 
"What  a  triumphant  career  is  this  for  a  woman!  Can  it  be  anything  less 
than  the  tabernacle  of  God  with  men,  the  fulfillment  of  the  vision  of  the 
lonely  seer  on  the  Isle  of  Patmos,  the  wonder  in  heaven  delivering  the  child 
which  shall  rule  all  nations?" 


64  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

reasons  some  of  the  by-laws  form  an  interesting  study.  One 
secures  Mrs.  Eddy's  honor  by  imposing  on  every  member  the 
bounden  duty  not  to  quote  from  her  works  without  mentioning 
her  name: 

"Art,  XV,  sect.  1 :  To  pour  into  the  ear  of  listeners  the 
sacred  revelations  of  Christian  Science  indiscriminately,  or 
without  characterizing  their  origin,  and  thus  distinguishing 
them  from  the  writings  of  authors  who  think  at  random  on 
this  subject,  is  to  lose  some  weight  in  the  scale  of  right  think- 
ing. Therefore  it  is  the  duty  of  every  member  of  this  Church, 
when  publicly  reading  or  quoting  from  the  books  or  poems 
of  our  Pastor  Emeritus,  first  to  announce  the  name  of  the 
author.  Members  shall  also  instruct  their  pupils  to  adopt 
the  aforenamed  method  for  the  benefit  of  our  Cause." 

Another  by-law  copes  with  the  danger  that  might  arise  to 
the  Cause  from  the  too  great  prominence  which  some  preachers 
were  quickly  acquiring.  To  obviate  such  a  calamity,  a 
ukase  went  out  in  1895  which  demanded  of  all  pastors  to  step 
down  from  their  pulpits  and  to  make  room  for  the  one,  only  and 
perpetual  preacher  and  pastor,  the  Textbook :  '^ 

''Art.  XIV,  sect.  1 : 1,  Mary  Baker  Eddy,  ordain  the  Bible 
and  Science  and  Health  with  Key  to  the  Scriptures,  Pastor 
over  The  Mother  Church, — the  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scien- 
tist, in  Boston,  Massachusetts  .  .  .  they  will  continue  to 
preach  for  this  Church  and  the  world." 

This  leaves  the  Christian  Science  services  without  preachers 
and  without  sermons.  Instead,  two  readers  are  appointed  to 
hold  office  for  the  term  of  three  years.  Originally,  the  First 
Reader,  the  one  higher  in  dignity  and  drawing  a  larger  salary, 
was  to  read  from  the  Bible,  and  the  Second  Reader,  from 
Science  and  Health;  but  Mrs.  Eddy  soon  reversed  this  order, 
and  now  the  First   Reader  reads  the  so-called  "correlative" 

*In  Miscellaneous  Writings  (p.  382)  Mrs.  Eddy  makes  this  ludicrous 
pronouncement  even  more  general,  saying:  "In  1895  I  ordained  that  the 
Bible  and  Science  and  Health  with  Key  to  the  Scriptures,  the  Christian 
Science  textbook,  be  the  pastor,  on  this  planet,  of  all  the  churches  of  the 
Christian  Science  denomination.  .  .  .  Whenever  and  wherever  a  church 
of  Christian  Science  is  established,  its  pastor  is  the  Bible  and  my  book." 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  55 

passages  from  the  Textbook.  This  reading  is  called  the  Lesson- 
Sermon,  which,  since  1897,  the  First  Reader  always  introduces 
with  the  following  explanatory  note : 

"Friends  :  The  Bible  and  the  Christian  Science  Textbook 
are  our  only  preachers.  We  shall  now  read  Scriptural  texts, 
and  their  correlative  passages  from  our  denominational  text- 
book— these  comprise  our  sermon.  The  canonical  writings 
together  with  the  word  of  our  textbook,  corroborating  and 
explaining  the  Bible  texts  in  their  spiritual  import  and  appli- 
cation to  all  ages,  past,  present  and  future,  constitute  a  ser- 
mon, undivorced  from  truth,  uncontaminated  and  unfettered 
by  human  hypotheses,  and  divinely  authorized. 

"The  afternoon  (or  evening)  service  is  a  repetition  of  the 
morning  service."  ^ 

To  guard  against  the  danger  that  a  Reader  might  circum- 
vent the  law  abolishing  preaching  by  adding  explanations  to 
his  reading,  the  Readers  are  warned  against  such  an  abuse  of 
power. 

"Art.  Ill,  sect.  6:  They  (namely  the  Readers)  shall  make 
no  remarks  explanatory  of  the  Lesson-Sermon  at  any  time, 
but  they  shall  read  all  notices  and  remarks  that  may  be 
printed  in  the  Christian  Science  Quarterly.  This  By-Law 
applies  to  Readers  in  all  the  branch  churches."  ^ 

If  Mrs.  Eddy,  by  effectually  crushing  all  individuality  out 
of  Christian  Science,  raised  herself  to  a  position  of  authority 
to  which  very  few  mortals  ever  aspired,  she  did  not  on  that  ac- 
count lose  sight  of  the  mere  material  advantages  which  accrued 
to  her  from  this  monopoly.  She  had  advertised  the  first  edition 
of  Science  and  Health  as  a  book  "that  affords  an  opportunity 
to  acquire  a  profession  by  which  you  can  accumulate  a  for- 
tune." ^  Consistently  with  this  creed,  she  took  extraordinary 
pains  to  make  her  fortune  out  of  her  book.  A  few  facts  will 
make  this  clear.    Her  book  was  hers,  and  no  one  was  entitled  to 

^  Consult  any  number  of  Christian  Science  Quarterly. 

^  Branch  churches  are  all  called  Christian  Science  churches  with  the  one 
exception  of  The  Mother  Church,  the  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist,  in 
Boston,  Mass. 

'Cf.  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  in  McClure's  Magazine,  Vol.  XXXT,  p.  186. 


56  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

derive  any  benefit  from  it  except  he  was  willing  and  able  to 
own  his  own  copy. 

^^Art,  VIII,  sect,,  9:  No  member  shall  use  written  for- 
mulas, nor  permit  his  patients  or  pupils  to  use  them  as 
auxiliaries  to  teaching  Christian  Science,  or  for  healing  the 
sick.  Whatever  is  requisite  for  either,  is  contained  in  the 
books  of  the  Discoverer  and  Founder  of  Christian  Science. 
Sometimes  she  may  strengthen  the  faith  by  a  written  text 
as  no  one  else  can. 

"Sect.  10 :  A  member  of  this  Church  shall  not  publish  pro- 
fuse quotations  from  Mary  Baker  Eddy^s  copyrighted  works 
without  her  permission  and  shall  not  plagiarize  her  writings. 
This  By-Law  not  only  calls  more  serious  attention  to  the 
Commandment  of  the  Decalogue,  but  tends  to  prevent  Chris- 
tian Science  from  being  adtilterated." 

Yet  lest  there  should  remain  any  doubt  about  her  wishes 
in  this  so  important  matter,  she  published  in  Science  and  Health 
a  statement  which  leaves  nothing  to  be  desired  in  point  of  clear- 
ness.    She  says: 

"A  Christian  Scientist  requires  my  work  Science  and 
Health  for  his  text-book,  and  so  do  all  his  students  and  pa- 
tients. Why.P  First:  Because  it  is  the  voice  of  Truth  to 
this  age,  and  contains  the  whole  of  Christian  Science,  or  the 
Science  of  healing  through  Mind.  Second:  Because  it  was 
.  the  first  published  book  containing  a  statement  of  Chris- 
tian Science;  because  it  gave  the  first  rules  for  demonstrat- 
ing this  Science,  and  registered  the  revealed  Truth,  un- 
contaminated  by  human  hypotheses.  Other  works  which 
have  borrowed  from  this  book  without  giving  it  credit, 
have  adulterated  the  Science.  Third:  Because  this  book 
has  done  more  for  teacher  and  student,  for  healer  and  patient, 
than  has  been  accomplished  by  other  books."  ^ 

In  order  to  multiply  its  sale,  Mrs.  Eddy  multiplied  its 
editions  and  expected  that  at  least  every  practitioner  should 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  456.  Malevolent  critics  have  added  a  fourth  and 
more  cogent  reason  than  any  of  the  others:  it  is  this  that  every  volume  sold 
brought  in  the  sum  of  three  dollars,  the  greater  part  of  which  was  pure 
profit  for  Mrs.  Eddy.  It  is  through  the  sale  of  this  book  chiefly  that  she 
amassed  a  fortune  of  several  millions. 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  b^i 

use  always  the  latest  edition,  however  trivial  might  be  the 
changes  she  had  introduced.  The  extremes  to  which  she  went 
in  this  direction  can  be  gauged  from  a  notice  that  appeared  in 
the  Journal  as  late  as  February,  1908,  Mrs.  Eddy  then  being 
nearly  eighty-seven  years  old.     Here  is  its  exact  reproduction. 

Take  Notice 

I  request  Christian  Scientists  universally  to  read  the 
paragraph  beginning  at  line  thirty  of  page  442  in  the  edition 
of  Science  and  Health  which  will  be  issued  February  29.  I 
consider  the  information  there  given  to  be  of  great  import- 
ance at  this  stage  of  the  workings  of  animal  magnetism,  and 
it  will  greatly  aid  the  students  in  their  individual  experiences. 

Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy. 

The  edition  sold  fast  on  the  strength  of  this  notice;  but 
the  information  of  great  importance  which  Christian  Scientists 
thus  acquired,  filled  just  two  lines  inserted  in  a  blank  space 
at  the  end  of  a  chapter  and  necessitated  the  change  of  no  other 
plate  of  a  single  page  in  the  book.  It  would  have  occupied 
considerably  less  space  than  the  notice  recommending  its  per- 
usal and  reads  as  follows:  "Christian  Scientists,  be  a  law  to 
yourselves,  that  mental  malpractice  can  harm  you  neither  when 
asleep  nor  when  awake."  ^ 

As  there  will  be  no  other  occasion  to  come  back  on  this 
subject,  the  following  proofs,  among  others,  of  Mrs.  Eddy's 
commercialism  may  find  a  place  here.  In  March,  1897,  she 
forbade  all  her  followers  to  teach  any  student  for  one  year, 
commencing  on  March  14,  1897,  the  motive  for  this  sweeping 
prohibition  being  the  publication  of  her  new  work  Miscellaneous 
Writings, 

*' Miscellaneous  Writvngs,^^  she  there  announced,  "is  cal- 
culated to  prepare  the  minds  of  all  true  thinkers  to  under- 
stand the  Christian  Science  textbook  more  correctly  than  a 
student  can.  The  Bible,  Science  and  Health  with  Key  to  the 
Scriptures,  and  my  other  published  works  are  the  only  proper 
instructors  for  this  hour.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  all  Chris- 
tian Scientists  to  circulate  and  to  sell  as  many  of  the  books 
*Cf.  Peabody:  o'p.  cit.,  p.  138. 


68  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

as  they  can.  If  a  member  of  The  First  Church  of  Christ, 
Scientist,  shall  fail  to  obey  this  injunction,  it  will  render 
him  liable  to  lose  his  membership  in  this  Church." 

Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy. 

The  following  notice  needs  no  comment : 

Christian  Science  Spoons. — On  each  of  these  most  beauti- 
ful spoons  is  a  motto  in  bas-relief  that  every  person  on  earth 
needs  to  hold  in  thought.  Mother  ^  requests  that  Christian 
Scientists  shall  not  ask  to  be  informed  what  this  motto  is, 
but  each  Scientist  shall  purchase  at  least  one  spoon,  and 
those  who  can  afford  it,  one  dozen  spoons,  that  their  families 
may  read  this  motto  at  every  meal,  and  their  guests  be  made 
partakers  of  its  simple  truth. 

Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy.^ 

The  price  of  these  spoons  was  three  dollars  for  the  plain 
silver  one,  and  five  dollars  apiece  for  those  with  gold  plated 
bowls. 

We  have  exposed  abundantly  Mrs.  Eddy's  assumption  of 
superior  knowledge,  practical  infallibility  and  divine  authority 
for  her  alleged  revelation.  It  matters  little  that  for  Mrs.  Eddy 
everything  is  supremely  natural,^  and  that,  consequently,  the 
word  revelation  can  have  no  intelligible  meaning  for  her,  other 
than  that  of  a  dawning  of  new  ideas  with  no  supernatural  origin 
and  no  supernatural  guarantee.  That  the  word  revelation  did 
not  have  for  Mrs.  Eddy  the  meaning  which  Christians  attach 
to  it  never  entered  into  the  minds  of  her  credulous  followers. 
They  took  her  words  as  they  sounded  and  looked  upon  her  as 
an  inspired  prophet.  This  belief  profoundly  influenced  their 
thoughts  and  lives,  and,  as  a  fundamental  part  of  their  new- 
found faith,  is  undoubtedly  an  important  factor  in  their  cures. 

We  must,  however,  absolutely  reject  Mrs.  Eddy's  claims  to  a 
divine  revelation.  Her  conflicting  statements  about  the  date 
of  this  revelation,  Quimby's  manuscript  as  the  source  of  her 

*Mrs.  Eddy  had  reserved  the  endearing  title  Mother  for  herself,  until 
Mr.  Clemens'  attacks  induced  her  to  exchange  it  for  that  of  Leader.  Cf. 
Mark  Twain:  Christian  Science  (New  York,  1907),  pp.  331  ff. 

'Peabody:  op.  cit.,  pp.  143  ff.,  134  ff. 

•"Now  as  then  his  mighty  works  are  not  supernatural,  but  supremely 
natural."    Science  and  Health,  Preface  xi. 


The  True  Origin  of  Christian  Science  69 

inspiration,  her  commercialism,  the  changes  constantly  intro- 
duced in  her  work,  all  tell  against  her.  Mr.  Peabody  reaches 
this  conclusion. 

"When  the  most  corrupt  tree  in  the  orchard  brings 
forth  the  sweetest  and  most  beautiful  fruit  of  all,  it  will  be 
believed  that  Mary  Baker  Eddy  can  be  the  channel  through 
which  God  has  revealed  Himself  to  mankind,  and  it  will  not 
be  believed  until  then.  ...  I  am  of  those  who  believe  that 
there  can  be  no  religion  but  a  religion  based  on  revelation. 
Either  God  reveals  Himself  to  us,  or  He  remains  unknown 
and  unknowable.  .  .  .  This  great  truth  has  been  and  is  the 
common  belief  of  mankind,  and  every  unprincipled  person 
who  has  appealed  to  human  credulity  along  religious  lines, 
knowing  mankind  so  to  believe,  has  faked  a  revelation  from 
God.  Mrs.  Eddy  has  put  herself  in  a  class  by  herself  by  the 
boldness,  the  irreverence,  the  recklessness,  the  blasphemy  of 
her  pretended  intimacy  with  God."  ■^ 

*  Peabody:  op.  cit.,  p.  56, 


CHAPTER   IV 


METAPHYSICAL  BASIS 


"It  is  difficult  to  give  a  condensed  summary  of  the  con- 
tents of  Science  and  Health  because  of  the  lack  of  order  and 
system  in  its  arrangement  and  in  its  ideas.  The  chapters 
themselves  have  several  times  been  shifted  around  in  a  differ- 
ent order,  and  they  might  be  shuffled  again  without  any  loss 
of  logic.  The  very  titles  of  the  chapters  sometimes  have  little 
aptness  as  designations  of  their  contents.  The  order  of  the 
paragraphs  in  the  chapters  also  follows  no  inherent  plan  and 
progress  and  frequently  baffles  the  reader  to  find  and  follow 
any  thread  of  connection.  There  are  only  a  few  fundamental 
ideas  in  the  book,  and  these  are  endlessly  iterated  and  reiter- 
ated until  one's  sense  of  interest  and  attention  is  dulled  into 
drowsiness :  reading  the  book  is  like  listening  to  a  player  on 
a  violin  who  keeps  sawing  on  one  string  and  making  few  vari- 
ations on  that.  One  really  has  to  maintain  a  firm  grip  on 
his  attention  to  keep  from  falling  into  a  stupor  while  perus- 
ing these  monotonous  pages. '^  ^ 

This  estimate  of  Dr.  Snowden's  is  well  deserved.  It  is  the 
general  complaint  of  all  who  had  to  study  Mrs.  Eddy's  text- 
book. 

"For,"  says  Mark  Twain,  "of  all  the  strange  and  frantic 
and  incomprehensible  and  uninterpretable  books  which  the 
imagination  of  man  has  created,  surely  this  one  is  the  prize 
sample.  It  is  written  with  a  limitless  confidence  and  compla- 
cency, and  with  a  dash  and  stir  and  earnestness  which  often 
compel  the  effects  of  eloquence,  even  when  the  words  do  not 
seem  to  have  any  traceable  meaning."  ^ 

Mrs.  Eddy  admits  the  indictment,  but  places  the  blame  on 
"the  inadequacy  of  material  terms"  for  metaphysical  state- 

*Snowden:  The  Truth  about  Christian  Science,  p.  102. 
'Mark  Twain:  Christian,  Science  (New  York,  1907),  p.  29. 

60 


Metaphysical  Basis  61 

merits  and  the  consequent  difficulty  of  so  expressing  meta- 
physical ideas  as  to  make  them  comprehensible  to  any  reader 
who  has  not  personally  demonstrated  Christian  Science.  "The 
great  difficulty  is  to  give  the  right  impression  when  translating 
material  terms  back  into  the  original  spiritual  tongue."  ^ 

The  real  reasons  for  Mrs.  Eddy's  difficulties  are  not  the 
inadequacy  of  the  English  language,  but  are  in  the  first  place 
the  author's  lack  of  logical  thinking  and  of  any  mental  training 
in  philosophical  reasoning,  and,  secondly,  her  custom  of  putting 
strange,  unconventional  and  fanciful  meanings  on  the  most 
ordinary  words,  thus  intentionally  introducing  a  source  of 
confusion  and  obscurity  of  thought  where  clearness  of  expres- 
sion is  above  all  desired.  Her  Key  to  the  Scripture,  represent- 
ing as  it  does  her  spiritual  interpretation  of  the  sacred  text, 
is  nothing  but  just  such  a  jumble  of  words.  To  give  a  few 
examples,  Issachar,  Jacob's  son,  is  defined  as  corporeal  belief; 
Jacob  himself  as  a  corporeal  mortal  embracing  duplicity,  re- 
pentance, sensualism,  and  yet — mirahile  dictu — representing  at 
the  same  time  Inspiration  and  the  Revelation  of  Science  (Chris- 
tian Science  of  course)  ;  Jerusalem  becomes  mortal  belief  and 
knowledge,  obtained  from  the  five  corporeal  senses;  Jesus  is 
the  highest  human  corporeal  concept  of  the  divine  idea;  Joseph 
is,  like  Jacob,  a  corporeal  mortal,  but  with  a  higher  sense  of 
Truth,  rebuking  mortal  belief  or  error;  Judah  is,  like  Issachar, 
only  more  so  a  corporeal  material  belief  progressing  and  disap- 
pearing, while  at  the  same  time  it  is  the  spiritual  understanding 
of  God  and  man  appearing.^ 

Not  only  is  this  freedom  with  human  speech  employed  for 
the  spiritual  interpretation  of  the  Scripture,  but  it  runs  all 
through  her  work.  "After  the  author's  sacred  discovery,"  she 
herself  says,  "she  affixed  the  name  Science  to  Christianity ;  the 
name  error  to  corporeal  sense,  and  the  name  substance  to 
Mind.*'  ^  In  Retrospection  and  Introspection  Mrs.  Eddy 
makes  a  similar  avowal  and  is  to  all  appearances  quite  satisfied 
with  her  achievement. 


^Science  and  Health,  p.  115. 
^Ihid.,  Glossary,  p.  589. 
*Ih%d.,  p.  483. 


62  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"The  Bible  was  my  textbook.  It  answered  my  question 
as  to  how  I  was  healed ;  but  the  Scriptures  had  to  me  a  new 
meaning^  a  new  tongue.  Their  spiritual  significance  ap- 
peared; and  I  apprehended  for  the  first  time,  in  their  spir- 
itual meaning  Jesus'  teaching  and  demonstration,  and  the 
Principle  and  rule  of  spiritual  Science  and  Metaphysical 
Healing, — in  a  word.  Christian  Science. 

"I  named  it  Christian,  because  it  is  compassionate,  help- 
ful and  spiritual.  God  I  called  Immortal  Mvnd.  That  which 
sins,  suffers  and  dies  I  named  mortal  mind.  The  physical 
senses,  or  sensuous  nature,  I  called  error  and  shadow.  Soul 
I  denominated  Substance,  because  soul  alone  is  truly  sub- 
stantial. God  I  characterized  as  individual  entity,  but  His 
corporeality  I  denied.  The  Real  I  claimed  as  eternal;  and 
its  antipodes,  or  the  temporal,  I  described  as  unreal.  Spirit 
I  called  the  reality;  and  matter,  the  wnreality.'*^  ^ 

Here  then  we  have  a  key  to  Mrs.  Eddy's  writings  which  will 
prove  much  more  serviceable  than  her  so-called  key  to  the 
Scripture  ever  will  be.  Why  she  should  not  call  God,  the  physi- 
cal senses,  the  soul,  matter  and  the  other  things  by  their  rightful 
names  is  inexplicable  except  on  the  ground  that  she  wished 
to  mystify  her  students  by  unintelligible  jargon.  That  she, 
Mrs.  Eddy,  the  founder  of  a  new  religion  and  of  a  new  Church, 
called  the  senses  an  error  and  a  shadow,  and  called  spirit  the 
reality,  and  matter  the  unreality,  neither  added  to,  nor  de- 
tracted from,  the  received  connotation  of  these  words.  With 
as  much  reason  she  might  call  a  horse  a  house,  and  a  house  a 
horse,  and  nobody  would  know  the  drift  of  her  conversation,  but 
forsooth,  the  privileges  of  the  revelator  and  the  prophet  of  a 
new  religion  would  be  safe.  For  Mrs.  Eddy  the  real  means  the 
eternal,  the  unreal  means  matter,  that  which  sins,  suffers  and 
dies,  is  called  mortal  mvnd:  such  are  a  few  of  the  choice  flowers 
taken  from  Mrs.  Eddy's  vocabulary ;  not  as  though  there  was 
anything  in  these  terms  that  made  them  synonymous,  but  Mrs. 
Eddy  without  proof  or  reason  just  chose  to  call,  name,  de- 
nomvnate  or  characterize  them  so,  no  doubt  because  she  thus 
rendered  herself  less  intelligible,  more  mystifying.     After  these 

*  Betros'pectwn,  p.  29-30. 


Metaphysical  Basis  63 

preliminaries  we  may  set  ourselves  to  the  task  of  explaining  the 
principles  that  underlie  Christian  Science  and  New  Thought. 

I.       THE  UNIVERSAL  MIND 

A  chasm,  wide  and  deep,  must  at  the  very  beginning  be 
drawn  between  Mind  and  mind.  With  a  capital.  Mind  is  God, 
the  real;  with  a  small  initial,  mind  is  mortal  mind,  error,  illu- 
sion, the  unreal. 

Mind  (with  a  capital  M)  is  defined  in  the  Glossary  as 
*'The  only  I,  or  Us";  again  as  "the  only  Spirit,  as  Soul,  as 
divine  Principle,  and  Substance,  as  Life,  Truth  and  Love." 
Again  it  is  defined  as  "the  one  God,"  as  the  "Deity  which  out- 
lines, but  is  not  outlined."  It  is  expressly  stated  that  it  is  not 
that  which  is  in  man  (small  m),  but  that  it  is  the  divine  Prin- 
ciple (or  God)  of  whom  Man  (with  a  capital  M)  is  the  full 
and  perfect  expression.^ 

Here  we  possess  a  wealth  of  synonyms  which,  on  the  whole, 
advance  us  but  little.     So  we  try  again. 

God  is  the  great  I  AM.  He  is  all-knowing,  all-acting,  all- 
wise,  all-loving  and  eternal.  He  is  Principle,  Mind,  Soul  and 
Spirit.  He  is  Truth  and  Love.  He  is  all  substance.  He  is 
Intelligence.  God  is  Life,  and  Life  is  the  divine  Mind,  and  the 
divine  Mind  is  eternal;  Life,  therefore,  cannot  be  limited:  it 
has  neither  beginning  nor  end.  God  is  Soul  or  spirit.  Con- 
sequently "there  is  no  finite  soul  or  spirit."  These  terms  mean 
"the  only  mind  and  cannot  be  rendered  in  the  plural."  All 
these  terms  are  consequently  absolutely  synonymous.  "They 
refer  to  one  absolute  God  and  nothing  else."  There  is  not  more 
than  one  Principle.  "Principle  is  divine,  one  Life,  one  Truth, 
one  Love,  and  this  is  God  omnipotent."  "Mind  is  all  and  matter 
is  naught  is  the  leading  factor  in  Mind- Science,"  for  "Christian 
Science  reveals  incontrovertibly  that  Mind  is  AU-in-aU,  that  the 
only  realities  are  the  divine  Mind  and  idea."  ^ 

Here  we  may  be  permitted  to  stop  for  a  few  considerations. 
Mrs.  Eddy's  concept  of  God,  despite  her  protests,  is  pantheis- 
tical.    In  the  beginning  she  objected  to  calling  God  a  person, 

^  Science  and  Health,  p.  591.    Cf.  pp.  468-469,  587. 
^Ihid.,  p.  109. 


64  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

precisely  because,  not  knowing  the  import  of  the  word,  she 
imagined  it  destroyed  her  pantheistical  conception  of  God. 
Later  on  she  wrote: 

"As  the  words  person  and  personal  are  commonly  and  ig- 
norantly  employed,  they  often  lead,  when  applied  to  Deity,  to 
confused  and  erroneous  conceptions  of  divinity,  and  its  dis- 
tinction from  humanity.  If  the  term  personality,  as  applied 
to  God,  means  infinite  personality,  then  God  is  infinite  Person, 
— in  this  sense,  but  not  in  the  lower  sense.  An  infinite  Mind 
and  a  finite  form  do  not,  cannot  coalesce."  ^ 

The  expression  Principle,  so  dear  to  Mrs.  Eddy,  leaves  the 
reader  or  hearer  cold  and  indifferent.  That  God  should  be 
called  Soul  is  unjustifiable,  except  on  the  pantheistic  principle 
that  he  is  the  world-soul;  or  on  the  scientistic  principle  that 
there  is  no  other  soul,  no  other  spirit,  no  created  soul  and  no 
created  spirit.  "The  term  sotils  or  spirits  is  as  improper  as  the 
term  gods"  says  Mrs.  Eddy.^ 

Is  this  Pantheism.?  By  no  means,  retorts  Mrs.  Eddy.  And 
to  prove  it,  she  publishes  a  small  pamphlet  of  fifteen  pages, 
retailing  at  twenty-five  cents  a  copy,  entitled  Christian  Science 
vs.  Pantheism.  There  is,  however,  a  hitch  in  her  demonstration, 
and  it  lies  in  the  fact  that  as  many  other  words,  so  also  the  word 
Pantheism  receives  from  the  Founder  of  Christian  Science  a 
scientistic  twist  which  takes  it  out  of  the  common  man's  vocabu- 
lary and  gives  it  a  new  meaning  altogether.  "Pantheism,"  Mrs. 
Eddy  says,  "may  be  defined  as  a  belief  in  the  intelligence  of 
matter."  ^  It  surely  Trmy  he  so  defined ;  Christian  Science 
also  may  be  so  defined;  no  dictionary,  however,  would  agree 
with  this  definition.  Any  dictionary  would  have  told  Mrs.  Eddy 
that  Pantheism  is  "the  doctrine  that  the  universe  is  God,"  or 
"the  system  of  theology  in  which  it  is  maintained  that  the 
universe  is  the  supreme  God."  And  this  is  exactly  what  Mrs. 
Eddy  maintains.     A  pantheistical  conception  of  the  universe, 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  116. 

^Ihid.,  p.  466.  Eddy:  No  and  Yes  (Boston,  1917),  p.  20.  "When  the 
term  divine  Principle  is  used  to  signify  Deity,  it  may  seem  distant  or  cold, 
until  better  apprehended.  This  Principle  is  Mind,  substance. — Life,  Truth, 
Love.  When  understood,  Principle  is  found  to  be  the  only  term  that  fully 
conveys  the  ideas  of  God, — one  Mind,  a  perfect  Man,  and  divine  Science." 

Uhid.,  p.  129. 


Metaphysical  Basis  65 

undoubtedly,  underlies  her  whole  teaching,  call  it  an  idealistic 
Pantheism,  if  you  wish,  but  Pantheism,  just  the  same.  This 
places  Christian  Science  outside  the  sphere  of  genuine  Chris- 
tianity and  accounts  for  the  great  difference  between  Mrs. 
Eddy's  conception  of  God  and  our  own.  Our  God  is  Mind  and 
Free  Will ;  hers  is  only  Mind,  without  any  freedom  of  activity. 
How  this  works  out  in  practice  remains  to  be  seen. 

n.      THE  UNREAI.ITY  OF  MATTER 

Nothing  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  system  seems  to  be  more  certain 
than  that  matter  has  no  existence;  but,  on  the  other  hand, 
nothing  seems  to  be  more  plain  than  that  it  has.  Is  this  merely 
a  delusion  of  mortal  mi/nd?  Is  it  that  Mrs.  Eddy  did  not  see 
the  contradiction  in  her  system  or  is  it  merely  a  question  of 
words,  a  logomachia,  introduced  to  baffle  and  impress  those 
who  take  Mrs.  Eddy  seriously .''    This  we  have  to  find  out. 

The  following  extract  contains  in  a  way  Mrs.  Eddy's  pro- 
fession of  faith  in  the  unreality  of  matter. 

"I,  therefore,"  she  says,  "plant  myself  unreservedly  on 
the  teachings  of  Jesus,  of  his  apostles,  of  the  prophets,  and 
on  the  testimony  of  the  Science  of  Mind.  Other  foundations 
there  are  none.  All  other  systems — systems  based  wholly 
or  partly  on  knowledge  gained  through  the  material  senses — 
are  reeds  shaken  by  the  winds,  not  houses  built  on  the  rock. 

"The  theories  I  combat  are  these:  (1)  That  all  is  mat- 
ter; (2)  that  matter  originates  in  Mind,  and  is  as  real  as 
Mind,  possessing  intelligence  and  life. 

"The  first  theory,  that  matter  is  everything,  is  quite  as 
reasonable  as  the  second,  that  Mind  and  matter  coexist  and 
cooperate.  One  only  of  the  following  statements  can  be 
true:  (1)  that  everything  is  matter;  (2)  that  everything  is 
Mind.     Which  one  is  it?"  ^ 

Repeatedly  Mrs.  Eddy  argues,  almost  pleads  with,  her  read- 
ers that  God,  being  Spirit,  could  not  possibly  create  anything 
material.  Instinctively  she  felt  that  by  this  statement  she  was 
taking  issue  with  all  theistic  philosophers.  In  the  absence  of 
any  rational  argument  she  resorts  to  the  practice  of  impress- 
^  Science  and  Health,  pp.  269-270, 


66  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

ing  by  the  frequency  of  repetition.  On  the  ground,  apparently, 
that  you  have  only  to  assert  long  enough  and  loud  enough,  to 
have  almost  anything  accepted,  she  again  and  again  dins  into 
the  ear  of  her  hearers  the  same  old  statement  of  the  unreality, 
the  non-existence,  the  non-actuality,  even  the  impossibility  of 
matter. 

If  we  should  object  that  if  there  is  anything  certain,  it  is 
the  existence  of  matter,  that  we  may  doubt  about  its  nature,  its 
constituent  parts,  its  final  analysis  and  its  origin,  but  not 
about  its  existence  of  which  our  senses  give  us  direct  evidence, 
Mrs.  Eddy  would  promptly  reply:  How  can  you  rely  on  your 
senses?  Have  they  not  been  proved  over  and  over  again  un- 
trustworthy ?  If  senses  play  you  false  when  they  display  before 
your  eyes  the  mirage  of  a  beautiful,  but  non-existent  landscape, 
how  can  you  trust  them  when  they  impress  you  with  some- 
thing that  cannot  possibly  exist?  Matter  cannot  exist  because 
it  is  unreality;  the  very  senses  that  we  suppose  give  testimony 
of  its  existence,  are  themselves  an  illusion  of  the  mind:  they 
are  no  more  real  than  the  rest  of  the  material  errors. 

With  the  reality  and  trustworthiness  of  the  senses  denied, 
there  is,  of  course,  no  possibility  of  arguing  in  a  rational  man- 
ner. The  only  hope  of  convincing  the  opponent  of  his  error 
is  to  show  that  neither  he  nor  any  one  else  has  ever  consistently 
maintained,  throughout,  this  pretense  of  a  thoroughgoing 
idealism.  Take  as  an  instance  the  following  passages  picked 
at  random :    On  page  277  Mrs.  Eddy  writes : 

"Natural  history  presents  vegetable  and  animals  as  pre- 
serving their  original  species, — like  producing  like.  A  min- 
eral is  not  produced  by  a  vegetable,  nor  the  man  by  the  brute. 
In  reproduction,  throughout  the  entire  round  of  nature,  the 
order  of  genus  and  species  is  preserved." 

And  again  on  page  211 : 

"Nerves  are  not  the  source  of  pain  nor  pleasure.  We 
suffer  or  enjoy  in  our  dreams,  but  this  pain  or  pleasure  is  not 
communicated  through  a  nerve.  A  tooth  extracted  sometimes 
aches  again  in  belief,  and  the  pain  seems  to  be  again  in  its 
old  place.    A  limb  amputated  has  continued,  in  belief,  to  pain 


Metapht/siced  Basis  6*^ 

the  owner.     If  the  sensation  of  pain  in  the  limb  can  return 
and  be  prolonged,  why  could  not  the  limb  reappear?" 

Surely  these  passages  do  not  sound  like  denying  the  reality 
of  the  material  world.  Even  when  she  is  arguing  against  the 
reality  of  matter,  as  she  is  in  these  cases,  she  is  forced  to  take 
for  granted  many  things  that  could  not  be  so  but  for  the  exist- 
ence of  matter.  The  very  words  she  uses — nerves,  tooth,  limb, 
vegetable,  animal,  mineral — are  meaningless,  if  matter  is  unreal 
in  the  full  sense  of  this  word.  But  Mrs.  Eddy  is  not  thus  easily 
silenced.  She  always  left  a  loophole  open  through  which  she 
could  retreat  when  circumstances  required.  Her  final  plea,  ap- 
plicable in  all  emergencies,  was  that  her  words  did  not  represent 
her  meaning: 

"If  our  words  fail  to  express  our  deeds,  God  will  redeem 
that  weakness,  and  out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  he  will  perfect 
praise.  .  .  .  The  opponents  of  Christian  Science  must  be 
charitable,  if  they  would  be  Christian.  If  the  letter  of  Chris- 
tian Science  appears  inconsistent,  they  should  gain  its  spir- 
itual meaning,  and  then  the  ambiguity  will  vanish.  ,  ,  ,^  In 
Christian  Science  there  are  no  discords,  because  its  logic  is 
as  harmonious  as  the  reasoning  of  an  accurately  stated  syl- 
logism, or  of  a  properly  computed  sum  in  arithmetic."  ^ 

What,  then,  is  this  spiritual  meaning  Mrs.  Eddy  boasts  of.'' 
She  tells  us  that  matter  is  not  real,  but  also  that  "the  real  I 
claimed  as  eternal,  and  its  antipodes,  or  the  temporal,  I  de- 
scribed as  unreal.  Spirit  I  called  the  reality,  and  matter  the 
mnreality"  ^  If  we  take  our  clew  from  these  words,  we  come 
to  the  conclusion  that,  after  all,  if  the  expression  may  be 
permitted,  there  is  question  only  of  "naming"  the  child :  Spirit 
/  called  the  reality,  and  matter,  the  unreality.  We  should  much 
prefer  to  speak  of  the  eternal  as  the  eternal,  and  of  the  real 
as  the  real,  and  to  abide  by  the  meaning  our  dictionaries  predi- 
cate of  the  words.  "Real"  means  anything  that  is  not  merely 
fictitious  or  imaginary;  but  if  we  could  take  it  in  the  sense  of 
eternal,  we  would,  of  course,  all  agree  that  God  alone  is  real. 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  354. 

^Ihid.,  p.  129. 

*  Retrospection,  p.  30. 


68  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Yet,  even  now  we  have  not  caught  the  full  meaning  of  Mrs. 
Eddy's  assertion  that  God  is  real  and  the  material  world  unreal. 
This  means  not  merely  that  God  is  eternal  and  matter  is  not, 
but  that  matter  has  no  existence,  I  do  not  say  independently 
of  God,  what  we  all  would  admit,  but  outside  of  Mind.  Mrs. 
Eddy  is  an  idealist  for  whom  all  realities  are  ideas.  In  vain 
do  her  Protestant  critics  labor  to  prove  that  she  cannot  be  con- 
sidered a  representative  of  any  of  the  idealistic  schools  of 
philosophy,  be  it  that  of  Plato,  of  Fichte,  of  Schelling,  of 
Hegel,  or  particularly  of  Berkeley.  Though  all  these  systems 
undoubtedly  differ  widely  from  each  other  in  detail,  yet  they 
have  this  in  common  among  themselves  and  with  Mrs.  Eddy 
and  the  followers  of  the  New  Thought  movement,  that  their 
world  is  one  of  ideas. 

There  can  be  no  question  about  this  relationship.  It  can- 
not, indeed,  be  proved  that  Mrs.  Eddy  directly  drew  from  any 
of  these  sources.  In  fact,  the  contrary  seems  to  be  more  likely. 
It  may,  nevertheless,  be  stated  with  confidence  that  she  came  in- 
directly under  their  influence.  About  that  time  Ralph  Waldo 
Emerson  (1803-1882)  was  making  Concord,  Massachusetts,  the 
Mecca  whither  flocked  many  of  the  staunchest  supporters  of  a 
mystical,  idealistical  and  pantheistical  naturalism.  These 
formed  between  themselves  a  close  group  of  transcendentalists, 
whose  influence  made  itself  widely  felt  through  their  literary  ac- 
tivities, whether  in  the  writing  of  books  or  in  the  editing  of 
magazines  or  in  the  publishing  of  newspaper  articles.  From 
1840  to  1844  Emerson  and  Margaret  Fuller,  "the  most  intel- 
lectual woman  of  her  time  in  America,"  published  the  Dial,  a 
quarterly  magazine,  devoted  to  the  Transcendentalist  move- 
ment. 

A  woman  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  character,  so  fond  of  novelties  and 
of  the  public  gaze,  could  not  but  feel  the  reverberation,  so  to 
say,  of  these  bold  innovations.  The  very  foundations  on  which 
her  system  rests  are  to  a  great  extent  the  conclusions  that  these 
philosophers  reached.  In  fact,  the  chief  difference  between 
them  lies  in  this  that  Mrs.  Eddy  was  not  a  philosopher  at  all, 
but  accepted  without  criticism  as  the  foundation  of  her  prac- 
tical and  religious  system  of  thought  the  conclusions  they  tried 


Metaphysical  Basis  69 

to  establish  on  rational  grounds.  Mrs.  Eddy's  arbitrary  method 
of  giving  new  meanings  to  old  terms  renders  her  perhaps  a  de- 
gree more  obscure  and  unintelligible  than  the  philosophers, 
but,  on  the  whole,  it  is  condemnation  enough  to  say  that  with 
them  all  she  completely  discounts  the  testimony  of  the  senses, 
thus  opening  the  way  to  an  arbitrary  subjectivism. 

The  necessities  of  her  position  as  an  inspired  messenger  of 
God  forced  Mrs.  Eddy  to  disclaim  any  connection  with  con- 
temporary idealism.  The  New  Thought  writers,  on  the  other 
hand,  from  W.  F.  Evans  downward,  gladly  admit  this  kinship 
on  their  behalf.  They  almost  look  upon  Emerson  as  a  prophet 
of  their  own.  His  essay  on  Brahma  or  the  Over-Soul  might  well 
be  cited  in  New  Thought  literature  as  an  introduction  to  the 
whole  movement.  In  charming  language  Emerson  extols  what 
Mrs.  Eddy  tries  laboriously  to  preach  in  uncouth  accents.  To 
show  how  deeply  the  modern  mind-movements  have  drunk  from 
the  waters  of  New  England  Transcendentalism,  the  following 
lengthy  extracts  from  Emerson's  OverSovl  will  here  be  given 
without  comment. 

"Man  is  a  stream  whose  source  is  hidden.  .  .  .  Always 
our  being  is  descending  into  us  from  we  know  not  whence. 
The  most  exact  calculator  has  no  prescience  that  somewhat 
incalculable  may  not  balk  the  very  next  moment.  I  am  con- 
strained every  moment  to  acknowledge  a  higher  origin  for 
events  than  the  will  I  call  mine.  ...  As  with  events,  so  it 
is  with  thoughts.  When  I  watch  that  flowing  river  which, 
out  of  regions  I  see  not,  pours  for  a  season  its  streams  into 
me, — I  see  that  I  am  a  pensioner — not  a  cause,  but  a  sur- 
prised spectator  of  this  ethereal  water;  that  I  desire  and 
look  up,  and  put  myself  in  the  attitude  of  reception,  but  from 
some  alien  energy  the  visions  come."  "^ 

"We  live  in  succession,  in  division,  in  parts,  in  particles. 
Meantime  within  man  is  the  soul  of  the  whole ;  the  wise  silence ; 
the  universal  beauty  to  which  every  part  and  particle  is 
equally  related;  the  eternal  ONE.  And  this  deep  power  in 
which  we  exist  and  whose  beatitude  is  all  accessible  to  us, 
is  not  only  self-sufficing  and  perfect  in  every  hour,  but  the 
act  of  seeing  and  the  thing  seen^  the  seer  and  the  spectacle, 

^Emerson's  Essays,  First  Series  (Chicago),  p.  254. 


70  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

the  subject  and  the  object  are  one.  We  see  the  world  piece 
by  piece,  as  the  sun,  the  moon,  the  animal,  the  tree;  but  the 
whole  of  which  these  are  the  shining  parts,  is  the  soul."  ^ 

"A  wise  old  proverb  says,  'God  comes  to  us  without  bell' : 
that  is,  as  there  is  no  screen  or  ceiling  between  our  heads  and 
the  infinite  heavens,  so  is  there  no  bar  or  mall  in  the  soul 
where  Timn,  the  effect,  ceases,  and  God,  the  cause,  begins. 
The  walls  are  taken  away.  We  lie  open  on  one  side  to  the 
deeps  of  spiritual  nature,  to  all  the  attributes  of  God.  .  .  . 
The  soul  circumscribeth  all  things.  As  I  have  said  it  con- 
tradicts all  experience,  .  .  .  Some  thoughts  always  find  us 
young  and  keep  us  so,  .  .  .  The  soul  looketh  steadily  for- 
ward, creating  a  world  always  before  her,  and  leaving  worlds 
always  behind  her.  She  has  no  dates,  nor  rites,  nor  persons, 
nor  specialties,  nor  men.  The  soul  knows  only  the  soul.  All 
else  is  idle  weeds  for  her  wearing."  ^ 

"Ineffable  is  the  union  of  man  and  God  in  every  act  of 
the  soul.  The  simplest  person,  who  in  his  integrity  worships 
God,  becomes  God;  yet  forever  and  ever  the  influx  of  this 
better  and  universal  self  is  new  and  unsearchable.  .  .  .  When 
we  have  broken  our  god  of  tradition  and  ceased  from  our 
god  of  rhetoric,  then  may  God  fire  the  heart  with  his  pres- 
ence. It  is  the  doubling  of  the  heart  itself,  nay,  the  infinite 
enlargement  of  the  heart  with  a  power  of  growth  to  a  new 
infinity  on  every  side."  ^ 

We  are  now  enabled  to  give  a  more  connected  account  of 
Christian  Science  philosophy.  Its  often  repeated  statements 
that  matter  is  nothing,  is  unreal,  unactual,  even  non-existent, 
could  be  paralleled  by  an  equally  formidable  array  of  testi- 
monies to  the  effect  that  matter,  though  by  no  means  real  in 
the  Eddian  sense  of  the  word,  is  quite  real  in  its  ordinary 
sense.  Occasionally  Mrs.  Eddy  herself  forgets  the  role  she  is 
playing  and  applies  the  word  real  to  such  unrealities  as  sin, 
sickness  and  death.  "Sin,  sickness  and  death,"  she  says,  "are 
the  vague  realities  of  human  conclusions.  To  material  sense 
the  unreal  is  the  real  until  this  sense  is  corrected  by  Christian 
Science."  * 

*  Emerson:  op.  cit.,  p.  255. 
» Ibid.,  p.  257-260. 
*lhid.,  p.  277. 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  297. 


Metaphysical  Basis  71 

Mrs.  Eddy's  ideal  world — and  this  applies  with  equal  force 
to  New  Thought — in  spite  of  all  assertions  to  the  contrary,  is 
not  a  world  of  fancy  and  fiction.  It  is  a  world  in  which  "things 
are  thoughts,  and  thoughts  are  things."  Thus  understood,  this 
ideal  world  is  not  without  grandeur:  taken  in  the  abstract, 
it  is  rather  an  improvement  on  some  other  idealistic  concep- 
tions of  the  world.  For  the  Mind  that  thinks  such  splendid 
thoughts  as  the  world,  nature,  the  universe,  man  himself  in- 
cluded, is,  after  all,  the  Divine  Mind.  That  this  truth  is  in- 
dissolubly  linked  with  the  grossest  errors,  accompanied  with 
a  denial  of  the  trustworthiness  of  the  senses  and  the  materiality 
of  matter;  that,  at  least  implicitly,  it  holds  these  thoughts  to 
be  the  necessary  operations  of  the  divine  Mind;  that  it  ex- 
plicitly denies  secondary  causes  and  secondary  causality,  these 
are  so  many  flaws,  very  serious  in  themselves,  and  sufficient 
to  wreck  the  whole  system ;  yet  they  do  not  detract  from  that 
grand  and  true  conception  of  God  as  the  author  of  all  that  is. 
Herein  lies  one  of  the  reasons  why  so  many  intelligent  men,  in 
spite  of  all  the  shortcomings  of  this  new  religion,  and  in  spite 
of  all  opposition  to  it,  still  continue  to  proclaim  themselves 
convinced  and  loyal  Christian  Scientists. 

Others  are  attracted  by  the  mystical  element  which  pervades 
its  teaching.  Taken  in  its  pragmatical  sense  as  a  value  judg- 
ment, the  unreality  of  matter,  that  means  its  fleetiness,  its  un- 
stable and  transitory  character,  its  lack  of  intrinsic  and  perma- 
nent value,  strongly  appealed  to  many  a  Catholic  saint  to  whom 
the  visible  world  became  more  and  more  unreal  as  he  grew  more 
and  more  in  the  love  of  God.  Yet  what  a  difference  in  attitude 
between  these  men  who  forsook  the  world  to  serve  God,  and 
Mrs.  Eddy  who  claimed  to  serve  God  and  who  denied  the  reality 
of  matter,  the  more  surely  to  acquire  the  material  goods  and 
comforts  of  this  world!  There  is  no  better  criterion  of  sin- 
cerity of  belief  than  practice. 

Before  proceeding  to  another  subject,  let  us  briefly  sum  up 
the  false  conclusions  to  which  Mrs.  Eddy's  false  premises  have 
led  her.  These  are  as  follows:  Since  God  alone  is  real,  the 
world,  plants,  animals,  man  are  one  and  all  His  ideas.  These 
individualized  ideas  have  no  real  activity  of  their  own,  but  their 


72  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

whole  seeming  activity  is  directly  from  God.^  God's  ideas  are 
as  necessary  as  Himself.  This  identification  is  so  complete 
that  Mrs.  Eddy  finds  herself  compelled  to  speak  of  man,  not 
only  as  immortal,  but  as  eternal;  of  his  birth  and  death  as 
unreal,  as  mere  phenomena  and  illusions ;  of  his  waxing  old  as  a 
fiction ;  of  his  body  and  senses  as  errors ;  of  his  needs  and  wants 
as  mere  beliefs.  It  is  to  these  beliefs  that  we  must  now  turn 
our  attention. 

*  It  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  recall  here  that  Malebranche  (1638-1715) 
and  other  Catholic  philosophers  have  held  similar  views. 


CHAPTER   V 

BELIEF,    FAITH,    UNDERSTANDING 

If  Mrs.  Eddy's  metaphysics  are  difficult,  her  psychology 
is  impossible.  It  is  only  by  willfully  closing  her  eyes  to  evidence 
that  stares  her  everywhere  in  the  face,  that  she  can  propound 
the  views  that  underlie  all  her  teaching.  If  we  believe,  with 
Mrs.  Eddy,  that  there  is  only  one  Mind,  how  account  for  the 
fact  of  the  many  contradictory  ideas  that  are  current.?  If  with 
her  we  deny  the  existence  of  matter,  how  can  we  account  even 
for  the  mere  concept  of  matter  in  general  and  of  numberless 
material  objects.^^  If  all  things  that  in  our  foolish  ignorance  we 
held  to  be  real,  are  in  fact  unreal,  how  can  we  account  for  the 
belief  in  their  reality.?  For  surely,  if  matter  is  an  unreality, 
then,  of  all  mysteries  the  belief  in  matter  is  the  most  mysterious. 
The  common  sense  of  mankind  will  rightly  consider  these  ques- 
tions an  acid  test  which  will  prove  or  disprove  Mrs.  Eddy's 
system.  If  she  cannot  satisfy  us  on  the  origin  and  nature  of 
this  universal  belief  in  matter,  her  metaphysics  must  go  to 
pieces  on  this  rock  of  truth. 

Mrs.  Eddy  distinguishes,  obscurely  enough,  between  three 
sorts  of  mental  acts  which  she  christens  belief,  faith  and  un- 
derstanding. A  knowledge  of  these  is,  to  say  the  least,  as 
necessary  for  a  proper  evaluation  of  Christian  Science  as  is  the 
doctrine  concerning  the  AU-ness  of  God.  The  fact  that  this 
inquiry  will  lead  into  subtle,  and  perhaps  unintelligible  dis- 
tinctions, into  a  region  where  Mrs.  Eddy's  own  mind  is  be- 
muddled,  must  not  stop  us  from  attempting  it.  The  funda- 
mental discrimination  between  these  three  concepts  in  Mrs. 
Eddy's  mind  is  this,  that  understanding  or  science  is  the  highest 
possible  knowledge,  the  only  one  that  has  a  right  to  live,  while 
faith  is  an  intermediary  state  of  mind,  hard  to  describe  as  it 
seems  to  partake  of  both  belief  and  understanding,  and  belief 

73 


74  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

is  always  an  error.     We  shall  begin  our  investigation  with  the 
latter. 

I.       BELIEF 

Mrs.  Eddy,  despite  a  wealth  of  synonyms  that  she  employs, 
nowhere  clearly  defines  what  she  means  by  belief.  And  how 
could  she,  seeing  that  belief  is  something  negative,  an  error, 
an  illusion,  an  unreality,  a  nothing?  Scholastics  used  to  dis- 
tinguish between  the  mere  absence  of  things  (absentia  rei)  and 
the  absentia  or  prinmtio  rei  debit ae,  the  absence  of  things  that 
should  be  present,  that  means  defects.  For  Mrs.  Eddy  belief  is 
essentially  a  defect  which  somehow  exists  somewhere.  It  is  not, 
as  one  might  be  inclined  to  infer,  a  merely  subjective  disposition 
— though  it  is  essentially  this ;  it  is  not  a  mere  discrepancy  be- 
tween subjective  mind  and  objective  reality — though  it  is  also 
this;  but  it  is  in  some  way  objective,  creating  for  itself  in  some 
mysterious  manner  a  whole  world  of  evil,  which,  nevertheless, 
has  no  existence  outside  this  realm  of  belief. 

For  Mrs.  Eddy  every  belief  is  error.  The  word  has  an 
absolutely  odious  significance  and  can  no  longer  be  employed 
to  express  intellectual  conviction,  or  intellectual  surmise;  it 
must  be  used  only  to  express  that  which  is  not  so  in  reality. 
Now,  as  according  to  Mrs.  Eddy  the  whole  material  world  is 
not  so,  the  whole  world  is  the  object,  yea,  the  creation  of 
belief.  Among  this  stock  of  false  beliefs  that  exist  somehow  in 
the  world,  we  may  mention  the  belief  in  matter,  or  the  mate- 
riality of  the  universe;  the  belief  in  the  laws  of  nature;  the 
belief  in  the  existence  of  our  own  bodies ;  the  belief  in  the 
trustworthiness,  nay,  the  existence  of  our  senses;  the  belief  in 
the  reality  of  sickness;  the  belief  in  the  reality  of  sin;  the 
belief  in  the  reality  of  death ;  the  belief  in  the  necessity  of  drugs 
and  the  necessity  of  hygiene ;  the  belief  in  the  reality  of  evil  and 
misery  of  all  kinds,  of  poverty  and  pain,  of  poison  and  de- 
structive physical  powers;  the  belief  even  in  the  existence  and 
separate  powers  of  created  minds ;  the  belief  also  in  the  necessity 
of  food  and  drink  for  the  sustenance  of  life;  the  belief  of  men 
being  born  in  time,  growing  up  as  children,  increasing  in  size 
with  age,  declining  with  the  advancing  years  and  finally,  being 


Belief,  Faith,   Understanding  75 

subject  to  the  inevitable  decree  of  death:  all  these  beliefs  are 
so  many  falsehoods  and  errors  of  mortal  mind,  of  which  the 
Christian  Scientist  must  rid  himself. 

Another  group  of  beliefs,  much  less  extensive,  but  hardly 
less  comprehensive  and  sweeping  than  the  former,  springs  from 
the  first  one  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  great  metaphysical  principles, 
namely  that  God  is  All-in-all.  This  group  of  errors  is  char- 
acterized especially  by  the  belief  in  the  existence  of  minds  many, 
and  souls  many,  with  faculties  and  powers  of  their  own,  this, 
in  Mrs.  Eddy's  philosophy,  a  most  pernicious  heresy,  derogat- 
ing greatly  from  the  supreme  and  absolute  oneness  of  divine 
Mind. 

A  third  group  of  erroneous  beliefs  seems  to  have  its  origin 
in  that  unaccountably  strange  experience  that  bodies  which 
have  no  real  existence,  nevertheless,  are  diseased  or  disabled, 
and  make  man  feel  rather  uncomfortable  at  times.  Little 
"camels"  these,  which  a  good  Christian  Scientist  is  expected  to 
swallow  without  wincing ! 

For  all  these  false  beliefs  are  easily  dismissed  by  the  supreme 
and  overpowering  conviction  that  God,  being  Good  and  Mind, 
is  All-in-all;  that  consequently  there  can  be  no  matter;  there 
can  be  no  individual  created  mind,  and,  seeing  that  God  is  su- 
premely good,  there  can  be  no  evil.  There  can  be  no  sickness, 
for  a  variety  of  reasons:  on  the  one  hand,  the  goodness  of 
God  cannot  create  what  is  evil;  but  sickness  is  evil;  conse- 
quently, there  cannot  be  any  sickness ;  in  the  second  place,  sick- 
ness is  a  bodily  state ;  but  there  is  no  human  body  that  could 
be  sick  and  mind  cannot  be  sick,  consequently  there  is  no  sick- 
ness. Similarly,  there  is  no  sin,  since  God,  Who  is  All-in-all  and 
the  author  of  all  things,  cannot  sin;  there  is  no  death,  since 
death  is  something  evil,  and,  besides,  life  cannot  die;  there  is 
no  need  of  food  or  drink  or  raiment,  since  these  are  for  the 
benefit  of  a  body  that  has  no  real  existence.  This  is  the 
lesson  that  we  have  to  learn  before  we  can  share  in  the  inesti- 
mable blessings  of  Christian  Science. 

Such  is  that  logic  of  a  Christian  Scientist  of  which  Mrs. 
Eddy  boasts  that  it  is  "as  harmonious  as  the  reasoning  of  an 
accurately  stated  syllogism  or  of  a  properly  computed  sum  in 


76  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

arithmetic."  ^  Granting  the  premises,  the  process  of  reasoning 
is,  indeed,  logical  enough.  But  there  is  in  logic  something  else 
besides  mere  reasoning.  It  teaches  certain  lines  of  argument 
which  will  help  the  sincere  inquirer  to  detect  error  and  reach 
the  truth.  One  of  these  arguments  is  called  reductio  ad  ab- 
surdumi.  If  bj  logically  following  your  premises  you  reach 
conclusions  that  are  manifestly  absurd,  it  is  time  to  face  about 
and  examine  anew  your  premises,  for  undoubtedly  there  is  some 
hidden  error  lurking  in  them.  If  ever,  this  is  a  case  whert  the 
reductio  ad  absurdum  finds  its  fullest  exemplification. 

II.       MORTAI.  MIND 

Mrs.  Eddy  herself  felt  the  incongruity  of  allowing  these 
false  beliefs  to  hang,  as  it  were,  in  the  air.  As  they  are  false, 
they  cannot  possibly  be  in  the  Mind  of  God;  and  as  in  reality, 
so  Mrs.  Eddy  teaches,  there  are  no  created  minds,  these  be- 
liefs must  be  acts  without  an  actor,  deeds  without  any  one  to 
do  them.  To  overcome  this  anomaly,  Mrs.  Eddy  introduces  a 
deumi  ex  machina,  the  so-called  mortal  mind,  whose  nature  and 
origin  no  person  on  earth,  not  even  Mrs.  Eddy  herself,  could 
explain. 

Mrs.  Eddy  calls  this  term  mortal  mimd  "a  solecism  in 
language,"  and  admits  that  it  "involves  an  improper  use  of  the 
word  mind."  ^  You  may,  if  you  prefer,  choose  other  names 
and  call  it,  for  instance,  hypnotism  or  animal  magnetism ;  for 
Mrs.  Eddy  is  no  puritan  on  close  and  exact  definitions.  In 
fact,  the  vaguer  they  are,  the  better  they  suit:  you  will  get 
along  much  better  by  not  being  too  precise.  "As  used  in  Chris- 
tian Science,"  Mrs.  Eddy  tells  us,  "animal  magnetism  or  hyp- 
notism is  the  specific  term  for  error,  or  mortal  mind.  It  is  the 
false  belief  that  mind  is  in  matter,  and  both  evil  and  good; 
that  evil  is  as  real  as  goodness  and  more  powerful.  This  belief 
has  not  one  quality  of  Truth  or  good."  ^ 

At  best,  therefore,  this  term  mortal  mind  is  a  concession 
to  common  usage.     For,  we  are  told,  "usage  classes  both  evil 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  129. 
Ubid.,  p.  114. 
''Ibid.,  p.  103. 


Belief,  Faith,   Under standmg  77 

and  good  together  as  mmd;  therefore,  to  be  understood,  the 
author  calls  sick  and  sinful  humanity  mortal  mvnd,  meaning 
by  this  term  the  flesh,  opposed  to  Spirit,  the  human  mind,  and 
evil,  in  contradistinction  to  the  divine  Mind,  or  Truth  and 
good."  ^  Not  only  does  Mrs.  Eddy  concede  that  mortal  mind  is 
a  "spiritually  unscientific  definition." — she  should  rather  say 
a  conglomeration  of  contradictories — but  she  finally  grants 
that  "this  so-called  mind  is  a  myth."  ^  "Indeed,"  Mrs.  Eddy 
says,  "if  a  better  word  or  phrase  could  be  suggested,  it  would 
be  used;  but  in  expressing  the  new  tongue,  we  must  sometimes 
recur  to  the  old  and  imperfect,  and  the  new  wine  of  the  Spirit 
has  to  be  poured  into  the  old  bottles  of  the  letter."  ^ 

So  much  for  the  term  itself;  but  how  about  its  meaning.? 
From  the  citations  just  made  we  learn  that  it  is  "sick  and  sin- 
ful humanity,"  "the  flesh,"  "the  human  mind"  and  "evil."  These 
are  intelligible  concepts,  even  if  we  might  justifiably  quarrel 
about  the  juxtaposition  of  the  flesh,  the  human  mind  and  evil 
as  synonymous  expressions.  These,  I  say,  are  intelligible  con- 
cepts, as  long  as  we  take  these  words  in  their  ordinary  meaning ; 
but  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  theories  all  these  things  are  unrealities,  not 
only  in  the  sense  that  they  are  opposed  to  the  Supreme  Reality 
of  God,  but  even  in  the  sense  that  they  can  have  no  existence 
whatever.  For  God  being  the  only  Reality,  the  Cause  of  all 
things,  and  supremely  good,  there  can  be  no  place  anywhere 
for  such  concepts  as  those  just  described.  Hence  Mrs.  Eddy's 
^'harmoniotis  logic,''  again,  is  not  at  fault  when  she  tells  us  at 
last  that  "as  Mind  is  immortal,  the  phrase  mortal  mind  implies 
something  untrue  and,  therefore,  unreal;  and  as  the  phrase  is 
used  in  teaching  Christian  Science,  it  is  meant  to  denote  some- 
thing which  has  no  real  existence."  * 

As  mortal  mind  is  not  mind  at  all,^  and  as  it  cannot  be 
matter  long  since  ruled  out  of  court,  but  as  it  must  be  some- 
thing— else  why  should  Mrs.  Eddy  labor  so  hard  to  make  plain 
what  it  means — we  reach  at  last  the  sublime  conclusion  that  it 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  114. 
nbid.,  p.  152. 
Ubid.,  p.  114. 
*Ibid.,  p.  114. 

""'What   is   termed    mortal   mind,   or   carnal   mind — erring,   sinning   and 
dependent  on  matter  for  manifestation  and  life — is  not  Mind."    Ibid.,  p.  311. 


78  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

is  "something  which  has  no  real  existence,"  that  means,  some- 
thing which  is  nothing,  and  nothing  which  is  something. 

In  other  words,  Mrs.  Eddy  is  unable  to  get  out  of  the  en- 
tanglements into  which  her  system  has  led  her! 

in.      THE  WORKS  OF   MORTAL  MIND,  SO-CALLED 

And  yet,  how  infinitely  powerful  is  this  nothing  which  is 
something!  In  the  first  place — mirahile  dictu — though  itself 
"is  based  on  the  evidence  of  physical  senses  which  makes  minds 
many,"  yet  in  turn  all  the  bodily  organisms,  and  therefore  all 
the  physical  senses,  are  created  by  it :  "My  discovery  that  err- 
ing, mortal,  misnamed  mind  produces  all  the  organisms  of  the 
mortal  body,  set  my  thoughts  to  work  in  new  channels  and 
led  up  to  my  demonstration  of  the  proposition  that  Mind  is  all, 
and  matter  is  naught,  as  the  leading  factor  in  Mind-science."  ^ 
This  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  all  causation  is  reserved  to  the 
one  primal  cause,  God :  "There  is  but  one  primal  cause.  There- 
fore there  can  be  no  effect  from  any  other  cause;  and  there 
can  be  no  reality  in  aught  which  proceeds  not  from  this  great 
and  only  cause.  Sin,  sickness,  disease,  and  death  belong  not 
to  the  Science  of  Being.  They  are  the  errors  which  presuppose 
the  absence  of  Truth."  ^  Consequently,  "matter  which  takes 
divine  power  into  its  own  hands  and  claims  to  be  a  creator, 
is  a  fiction,  in  which  paganism  is  so  sanctioned  by  society  that 
mankind  has  caught  its  moral  contagion."  ^ 

This  fiction  of  a  mortal  mind,  strange  as  it  may  sound,  is  a 
"Pandora  box  from  which  many  evils  have  gone  forth,  espe- 
cially despair."  From  it  proceed  all  diseases,  all  accidents, 
all  sins,  all  vices,  all  mental  anxieties,  death,  aging,  weariness 
and  worry.  In  spite  of  its  unreality,  there  proceeds  from  it  also 
that  Red  Dragon,  called  Malicious  Animal  Magnetism,  to  which, 
owing  to  its  prominence  in  Sdentism,  we  have  to  consecrate  a 
special  chapter.  Stranger  still,  from  it  also  proceeds  a  certain 
intangible,  mystical  something  which  creates  an  unhealthy  at- 
mosphere, against  which  even  Christian  Science  is  frequently 
powerless.     For 

^Science  and  Health,  pp.  108  and  114. 
''Ibid.,  p.  207. 
»Ibid.,  p.  171. 


Belief,  Faith,   Understanding  79 

"the  universal  belief  in  physics  weighs  against  the  high  and 
mighty  truths  of  Christian  metaphysics.  This  erroneous 
general  belief — which  sustains  medicine  and  produces  all 
medical  results — works  against  Christian  Science;  and  the 
percentage  of  power  on  the  side  of  this  Science  (that  is, 
Christian  Science)  must  mightily  outweigh  the  power  of 
popular  belief,  in  order  to  heal  a  smgle  case  of  disease,^*  ^ 

Here  is  how  Mrs.  Eddy  explains  this  strange  power  of 
mortal  mind: 

"Disease  arises,  like  other  mental  conditions,  from  asso- 
ciation. Since  it  is  a  law  of  mortal  mind  that  certain  dis- 
eases should  be  regarded  as  contagious,  this  law  obtains 
credit  through  association, — calling  up  the  fear  that  creates 
the  image  of  disease,  and  its  consequent  manifestation  in  the 
body."  2 

From  this  it  follows  that  a  mother's  fears  may  be  her  child's 
disease.  The  mere  thought  of  sickness  may  produce  it,  not 
merely  in  the  one  that  harbors  this  dangerous  thought,  but  in 
others  who  are  innocent  of  it : 

"If  a  child  is  exposed  to  contagion  or  infection,  the 
mother  is  frightened  and  says,  'My  child  will  be  sick.'  The 
law  of  mortal  mind,  and  her  own  fears  govern  her  child  more 
than  the  child's  mind  governs  itself,  and  produce  the  very  re- 
sults which  might  have  been  prevented  through  the  opposite 
understanding."  ^ 

Such  is  the  strange  influence  of  this  fiction  of  a  mind  that 
has  no  real  existence. 

IV.       MORTAL  MIND,  MIND-CURES  AND  MEDICINE 

To  US  it  seems  that  we  are  dangerously  near  treading  on 
the  forbidden  ground  of  the  reality  of  human  minds,  and  dan- 
gerously near  the  theories  of  mind-healers  and  thought-curists, 
whose  theories  and  practices  Mrs.  Eddy  so  unsparingly  chas- 
tizes. To  all  appearances  Mrs.  Eddy's  mortal  mvnd  and  the 
hvmian  mind  of  other  psychotherapists  are  identical,  endowed 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  155. 
'76id.,  p.  154. 


V 


f 
80  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

with  exactly  the  same  properties  and  powers,  only  that — to 
emphasize  this  difference  once  more — mortal  mind  is  overbur- 
dened with  an  indefinite  number  of  very  erroneous  and  mischiev- 
ous beliefs,  which  humoM  mi/nd  will  look  upon  as  very  close  ap- 
proximations to  such  truths  as  are  within  its  reach. 

As  if  to  confirm  this  suspicion,  Mrs.  Eddy  refrains  from 
denying  all  sphere  of  influence  to  mortal  mind,  not  only  for 
evil,  what  we  should  expect  in  her  system,  but  even  for  good. 
Any  good  results  that  drugs  may  secure,  are  not  to  be  looked 
upon  as  effects  of  the  drug,  but  of  mortal  mind  and  its  false 
belief  in  their  efficacy.  An  enlightening  paragraph  of  Science 
and  Health  bears  precisely  on  this  point: 

^'Before  this  book  was  published,"  writes  Mrs.  Eddy, 
"other  books  were  in  circulation  which  discussed  mental  medi- 
cime  and  mind-cure,  operating  through  the  power  of  the 
earth's  magnetic  currents  to  regulate  life  and  health.  Such 
theories  and  systems  of  so-called  mind-cures  which  have 
sprung  up  since  are  as  material  as  the  prevailing  systems 
of  medicine.  They  have  their  birth  in  mortal  mind  which 
puts  forth  a  human  conception  in  the  name  of  Science,  to 
match  the  divine  Science  of  immortal  Mind,  even  as  the  necro- 
mancers of  Egypt  strove  to  emulate  the  wonders  wrought  by 
Moses.  Such  theories  have  no  relationship  with  Christian 
Science  which  rests  on  the  conception  of  God  as  all  Life,  sub- 
stance and  intelligence,  and  excludes  the  human  mind  as  a 
spiritual  factor  in  the  healing  work.  .  .  .  Erroneous  mental 
practice  may  seem  for  a  time  to  benefit  the  sick,  but  the  re- 
covery is  not  permanent.  This  is  because  erroneous  methods 
act  on  and  through  the  material  stratum  of  the  human  mind, 
called  brain,  which  is  but  a  mortal  consolidation  of  material 
mentality  and  its  suppositional  activities.  A  patient  under 
the  influence  of  mortal  mind  is  healed  only  by  removing  the 
influence  on  him  of  this  mind,  by  emptying  his  thought  of 
the  false  stimulus  and  reaction  of  will-power  and  filling  it 
with  the  divine  energies  of  Truth."  '^ 

Again  Mrs.  Eddy  says : 

"Human  belief  is  an  autocrat,  though  not  deserving  its 
power.    It  says  to  mortals,  'You  are  wretched^  and  they  be- 
^  Science  and  Health,  pp.  185-186. 


Belief,  Faith,   Understanding  81 

come  so ;  and  nothing  can  change  this  state  until  the  belief 
changes.  Human  belief  says,  *You  are  happy*  and  mortals 
are  so ;  and  no  circumstances  can  alter  the  situation  until  the 
belief  on  this  subject  changes."  ^ 

But  if  mortal  mind,  mortal  belief  can  relieve  suffering,  why 
not  be  satisfied  with  this  ?  Why  is  it  necessary  to  embrace  the 
Christian  Science  Creed  and  code  of  laws?  Would  it  not  be 
just  as  well  to  let  human  mind  perform  the  cure  without  having 
recourse  to  the  transcendent  help  of  the  eternal  Mind?  These 
questions  a  true  Christian  Scientist  will  answer  with  an  em- 
phatic no.  For  faith-cures  are  no  real  cures,  but  mere  make- 
shifts ;  they  are  more  than  useless ;  for  while  they  do  not  cure 
permanently,  they  but  fasten  error  on  the  human  mind,  and  it 
is  in  any  case  better  to  be  suffering  until  divine  Science  estab- 
lishes the  Truth  than  to  be  perfectly  well,  and  yet  hold  the 
erroneous  belief  that  matter  is  able  to  suffer.  Such  is  the 
drift  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  teaching;  such,  the  faith  of  a  Christian 
Scientist.    Mrs.  Eddy  says  on  this  point: 

"The  medicine  of  Science  is  divine  Mind,  and  dishonesty, 
sensuality,  falsehood,  revenge,  malice  are  animal  propensities 
and  by  no  means  the  mental  qualities  which  heal  the  sick. 
The  hypnotizer  employs  one  error  to  destroy  another.  If 
he  heals  sickness  through  a  belief,  and  a  belief  originally 
caused  the  sickness,  it  is  a  case  of  the  greater  error  over- 
coming the  lesser.  This  greater  error  thereafter  occupies 
the  ground,  leaving  the  case  worse  than  before  it  was 
grasped  by  the  stronger  error."  ^ 

And  on  the  contrary : 

"Science  not  only  reveals  the  origin  of  all  disease  as 
wholly  mental,  but  it  also  declares  that  all  disease  is  cured 
by  divine  Mind.  There  can  be  no  healing  except  by  this 
Mind,  however  much  we  trust  a  drug  or  any  other  means 
toward  which  human  faith  or  endeavor  is  directed.  It  is 
mortal  mind,  not  matter,  which  brings  to  the  sick  whatever 
good  they  may  seem  to  receive  from  drugs.  But  the  sick 
are  never  really  healed,  except  by  means  of  the  divine  power, 

*  Science  and  Health,  pp.  296-297. 
Uhid.,  p.  104. 


858  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

It  is  only  the  action  of  Truth,  Life,  and  Love  that  can  give 
harmony."  ^ 

Hence  the  final  conclusion  that  "Whatever  teaches  men  to 
have  other  laws,  and  acknowledge  other  power  than  the  divine 
Mind,  is  anti-Christian.  "'The  good  that  a  poisonous  drug  seems 
^  to  do  is  evil,  for  it  robs  man  of  reliance  upon  God,  omnipotent 
"  Mind,  and  according  to  belief  poisons  the  human  system." 
Hence  also  "discomfort  under  error  is  preferable  to  comfort. 
In  no  instance  is  the  effect  of  animal  magnetism,  recently  called 
hypnotism,  other  than  the  effect  of  illusion.  Any  seeming  bene- 
fit derived  therefrom  is  proportional  only  to  one's  faith  in 
esoteric  magic."  ^ 

The  reader  must  have  noticed  the  keen  anxiety  of  Mrs. 
Eddy  to  draw  a  clear  distinction  between  her  own  system  of 
healing  and  that  of  others.  This  attitude  of  mind,  unfor- 
tunately for  her,  is  not  proper  to  her;  it  is  characteristic  of 
mind-healers  generally,  and  is  evidently  an  essential  part  of 
the  trade.  Each  one  has  the  only  genuine  brand  of  mind- 
healing,  leaving  all  the  others  out  in  the  cold  as  mere  quacks 
and  charlatans.  Mrs.  Eddy  calls  hers  divine  Science,  makes 
it  a  real  religious  creed  and  stigmatizes  all  the  other  systems 
as  essentially  wrong  and  harmful.  Yet,  as  we  shall  see,  the 
difference  is  chiefly  in  the  name;  the  methods  and  means  em- 
ployed are  largely  identical;  and  the  effects  in  one  case  are 
no  more  striking  than  in  the  others.  Hers  is  the  same  position 
as  that  taken  by  a  famous  mind-healer  with  whom  Mr.  Buckley 
relates  the  following  personal  experience : 

"There  is  an  old  proverb,"  he  says,  "that  'when  rogues 
fall  out,  honest  men  get  their  dues.'  It  also  is  true  that  when 
quacks  fall  to  discrediting  each  other,  principles  may  be 
discovered. 

"In  1865  there  came  to  Detroit,  Michigan,  a  pupil  of  Dr. 
Newton,  Bryant  by  name,  who  performed  cures  as  success- 
fully as  Newton  himself.  In  company  with  Dr.  J.  P.  Scott, 
a  Presbyterian  minister  there,  I  visited  Dr.  Bryant  and  saw 
him  operate  upon  a  score  or  more  of  patients  (one  of  whom 
had  been  supposed  to  be  doomed  to  a  speedy  death  with  ovar- 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  169. 
^Ibid.,  p.  101. 


Belief,  Faith,   Under sta/nding  83 

ian  tumor;  Dr.  Bryant  removed  the  tumor,  after  which  she 
lived  some  months — and  died  of  debility).  To  comprehend 
his  method  fully,  I  was  operated  on  for  dyspepsia. 

"About  a  year  later,  returning  from  New  Orleans  to  Mem- 
phis, Tennessee,  I  found  on  board  the  steamer  Dt.  Newton, 
who  had  just  come  from  Havana.  He  told  me  that  in  one 
day  eight  hundred  persons  had  applied  to  him  in  that  city. 
.  .  .  For  several  hours  a  day  during  four  days  I  conversed 
with  him  concerning  his  career  and  principles.  My  conviction 
is  that  he  believed  in  himself,  and  also  that  he  would  use 
any  means  to  accomplish  his  ends.  He  would  glide  from 
fanaticism  into  hypocrisy,  then  into  fanaticism,  and  from 
that  into  common  sense  with  the  rapidity  of  thought.  .  .  . 
When  I  mentioned  having  seen  'Dr.'  Bryant,  Dr.  Newton  in- 
stantly denounced  him  as  an  'unmitigated  fraud  who  had  no 
genuine  healing  power,'  He  claimed  that  he  had  cured  Bry- 
ant of  a  malignant  disease  with  which  he  found  him  suffering 
in  a  hospital;  that  Bryant  had  acted  as  his  amanuensis  for 
some  time,  and  then  left  him,  and  had  since  been  acting  in 
opposition  to  him.  Knowing  that  the  manipulations  by  Bry- 
ant had  been  followed  by  some  wonderful  results  in  Detroit, 
I  said  to  Dr.  Newton : 

"  'If  Bryant  be  an  unmitigated  fraud,  how  do  you  account 
for  his  cures?'  'Oh,'  said  the  doctor,  'they  are  caused  by 
the  faith  of  the  people  and  the  concentration  of  their  minds 
upon  his  operations,  with  the  expectation  of  being  cured. 
Now  (said  he)  none  would  go  to  see  Bryant  unless  they  had 
some  faith  that  he  might  cure  them,  and  when  he  begins  his 
operations  with  great  positiveness  of  manner,  and  they  see 
the  crutches  he  has,  and  hear  the  people  testify  that  they 
have  been  cured,  it  produces  a  tremendous  influence  upon 
them ;  and  then  he  gets  them  started  in  the  way  of  exercising, 
and  they  do  a  good  many  things  they  thought  they  could 
not  do ;  their  appetites  and  spirits  revive,  and  if  toning  them 
up  can  possibly  reduce  the  diseased  tendency,  many  of  them 
will  get  well.' 

"Said  I,  'Doctor,  pardon  me,  is  not  that  a  correct  ac- 
count of  the  manner  in  which  you  perform  your  wonderful 
works  .'^'  'Oh,  no,'  said  he,  'the  difference  between  a  genuine 
healer  and  a  quack  like  Bryant  is  as  wide  as  the  poles.* "  ^ 

*  Buckley :    Faith-Healing,    Christian    Science    and   Kindred   Phefhomena 
(New  York,  1892),  pp.  33-35. 


84  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

How  very  much  like  the  attitude  Mrs.  Eddy  took  towards 
all  other  systems  of  healing.  There  can  positively  be  but  one 
brand  of  mind-healing,  and  that  the  brand  each  one  practices 
in  opposition  to  every  one  else.  But  enough  of  mortal  belief; 
we  shall  now  proceed  to  discuss  Mrs.  Eddy's  concept  of  faith 
and  tmderstanding^,  as  distinguished  from  mere  belief. 

v.       FAITH    AND    UNDERSTANDING 

Mrs.  Eddy  gives  us  a  summary  description  of  the  trans- 
formation of  mortal  mind  into  full  understanding,  a  trans- 
formation which  she  misnames  Scientific  translation  of  mortal 
mind.  It  contains  three  stages  or  degrees  and  leads  from  de- 
pravity/ through  the  disappearance  of  false  beliefs  into  full 
understanding.  The  first  stage  is  called  physical,  the  second 
moral  and  the  last  spiritual.  Here  is  the  exact  reproduction 
of  this  so-called  scientific  description : 

SCIENTIFIC   TRANSLATION   OF   MORTAL  MIND 

First  degree:  Depravity 
Physical.     Evil   beliefs,   passions    and   appetites,    fear,   de- 
praved will,  pride,  envy,  deceit,  hatred,  revenge,  sin,  sick- 
ness, disease,  death.     (All  this  in  the  margin  is  styled  Un- 
reality. ) 

Second  Degree:  Evil  beliefs  disappearing 
Moral.     Humanity,   honesty,    affection,    compassion,    hope, 
faith,  meekness,  temperance.      (The  marginal  gloss  calls 
these  transitional  qualities.     As  mortal  mind  is   evil,  it 
may  be  asked  whether  these  transitional  qualities  also  must 
be  considered  evil.    No  direct  answer  is  given.) 
Third  Degree:  Understanding 
Spiritual.     Wisdom,  purity,   spiritual  understanding,  spir- 
itual power,  love,  health,  holiness.     (The  marginal  gloss 
reads  Reality.     The  explanation  that  follows  says:    "In 
the  third  degree  mortal  mind  disappears;   and  man  as 
God's  image  appears."  ^ 
The  second   degree  is   identical  with  what  Mrs.  Eddy  in 
other  places  calls  faith.     As  a  curative  factor,  faith  stands  a 
degree  higher  than  belief.     Of  course,  the  words  are  often  taken 
to  be  synonymous,  but,  in  fact,  the  word  faith  is  of  wider  im- 
^  Science  and  Health,  p,  115. 


Belief,  Faith,  Understandimg  85 

port.  It  may  mean  belief;  it  may  mean  trustfulness;  it  may 
mean  trustworthiness.  If  it  means  mere  belief,  it  is,  in  Mrs. 
Eddy's  words,  "as  a  pendulum  swinging  between  nothing  and 
something,  having  no  fixity";  if  it  means  trustfulness,  it  signi- 
fies that  he  who  has  faith  entrusts  his  welfare  to  others,  a  con- 
dition which  Mrs.  Eddy  characterizes  as  "the  helplessness  of 
a  blind  faith";  but  if  it  is  the  highest  kind  of  faith,  a  faith 
which  should  not  be  called  faith,  but  understanding,  it  is  that 
disposition  which  "understands  divine  Love  and  how  to  work 
out  one's  own  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling."  ^  In  its 
specific  sense  as  intermediary  between  belief  and  understanding, 
faith  is  thus  described : 

"Faith  is  higher  and  more  spiritual  than  belief.  It  is  a 
chrysalis  state  of  human  thought,  wherein  spiritual  evidence, 
contradicting  the  testimony  of  material  senses,  begins  to  ap- 
pear, and  Truth,  the  ever-present,  is  becoming  understood. 
Human  thoughts  have  their  degrees  of  comparison.  Some 
thoughts  are  better  than  others.  A  belief  in  Truth  is  better 
than  a  belief  in  error,  but  no  human  opinions  are  founded 
on  the  divine  rock.  They  can  be  shaken;  and  until  belief 
becomes  faith,  and  faith  becomes  spiritual  understanding, 
human  thought  has  little  relation  to  the  actual  or  divine. 

"A  belief  fulfills  its  own  illusive  conditions.  Sickness, 
sin  and  death  are  the  vague  realities  of  human  conclusions. 
Life,  Truth  and  Love  are  the  realities  of  divine  Science,  which 
dawn  in  faith,  and  glow  full-orbed  in  spiritual  understand- 
ing. As  a  cloud  hides  the  sun  it  cannot  extinguish,  so  false 
belief  silences  for  a  while  the  voice  of  immutable  harmony; 
but  it  cannot  destroy  Science  armed  with  faith,  hope  and 
fruition."  ^ 

From  this  it  appears  that  understanding  is  the  goal  of  a 
Scientisfs  fervent  aspirations.  It  is  the  promised  land  of 
plenty,  the  Paradise  of  spiritual  pleasures,  the  haven  of  health 
and  happiness.     Hence  its  supreme  importance. 

"It  is  essential  to  understand,  instead  of  believe,  what  re- 
lates most  nearly  to  the  happiness  of  being.  To  seek  Truth 
through  belief  in  a  human  doctrine  is  not  to  understand  the 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  23. 
^Ibid.,  pp.  297-298. 


86  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

infinite.  We  must  not  seek  the  immutable  and  immortal 
through  the  finite,  mutable,  and  mortal,  and  so  depend  upon 
belief  instead  of  demonstration;  for  this  is  fatal  to  a  knowl- 
edge of  Science.  The  understanding  of  Truth  gives  real  faith 
in  it,  and  is  better  than  all  burnt-offerings."  ^ 

I  am  not  aware  that  Mrs.  Eddy  gives  anywhere  a  clearer 
definition  of  what  she  means  by  science  or  understanding.  At 
first  sight  it  might  appear  to  be  an  exceedingly  simple  matter: 
nothing  but  a  firm  conviction  that  God,  All-in-all,  is  good,  and 
that,  consequently,  evil  in  its  triple  variety  of  sin,  sickness 
and  death — others  add  poverty  to  this  trinity — is  unreal  and  in 
a  manner  non-existent.  Yet,  this  simplicity  is  more  apparent 
than  real;  for  understanding  has  a  negative,  as  well  as  a  posi- 
tive function :  it  must  destroy  as  well  as  build  up.  Its  gigantic 
task  consists  in  destroying  all  error,  that  means  all  belief :  for 
"belief  and  understanding  never  mingle.  The  latter  destroys 
the  former."  Consequently,  "when  we  fully  understand  our  re- 
lation to  God,  we  can  have  no  other  mind  but  His, — no  other 
Love,  wisdom  or  Truth,  no  other  sense  of  Life,  and  tig  con- 
sciousness of  the  existence  of  matter,  or  error."  ^ 

At  this  juncture  Mrs.  Eddy  draws  from  her  lively  imagina- 
tion a  pen  picture  of  what  this  future  struggle  between  under- 
standing and  belief,  or  mortal  mind,  will  be.  A  battle  royal  must 
be  waged  both  in  every  individual  and  in  the  world  at  large, 
and  this  battle  will  be  pathetically  terrific.  In  the  individual 
the  process  is  one  of  rnental  ferrnentation  during  which  old  ideas 
must  gradually  give  way  to  the  new : 

"Mortal  mind  will  vanish  in  a  moral  chemicalization. 
This  mental  fermentation  has  begun,  and  will  continue  until 
all  errors  of  belief  yield  to  understanding.  Belief  is  change- 
able, but  spiritual  understanding  is  changeless.  As  this  con- 
summation draws  nearer,  he  who  has  shaped  his  course  in  ac- 
cordance with  divine  Science  will  endure  unto  the  end.  As  ma- 
terial knowledge  diminishes  and  spiritual  understanding  in- 
creases, real  objects  will  be  apprehended  mentally  instead  of 
materially."  ^ 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  286. 
» Ibid.,  pp.  205,  276. 
*Ibid.,  p.  96. 


Belief,  Faith,  Undersiandmg  87 

This  personal,  individual  conflict  will  increase  a  million  fold 
in  the  struggle  for  the  emancipation  of  the  whole  race  from 
the  strangle-hold  of  belief. 

"This  material  world  is  even  now  becoming  the  arena  for 
conflicting  forces.  On  one  side  there  will  be  discord  and  dis- 
may; on  the  other  there  will  be  Science  and  peace.  In  the 
breaking  up  of  material  beliefs,  there  will  be  famine  and 
pestilence;  want  and  woe,  sin  and  sickness  and  death  will 
assume  new  phases,  and  their  nothingness  will  finally  appear. 
These  disturbances  will  continue  until  the  end  of  error, 
when  all  discord  will  be  swallowed  up  in  spiritual  Truth.  .  .  . 
During  this  final  conflict  wicked  minds  will  endeavor  to  find 
means  whereby  to  accomplish  more  evil;  but  those  who  dis- 
cern Christian  Science  will  hold  crime  in  check.  They  will 
aid  in  the  ejection  of  error.  They  will  maintain  law  and 
order,  and  cheerfully  await  the  certainty  of  ultimate  per- 
fection." ^ 

Nor  is  there  any  escape  from  this  mental  purgation.  Every 
man  must  pass  through  it,  either  in  this  life,  or  in  the  world  to 
come.    For 

"progress  is  born  of  experience.  It  is  the  ripening  of  mortal 
man,  through  which  the  mortal  is  dropped  for  the  immortal. 
Either  here  or  hereafter  suff^ering  or  Science  must  destroy 
all  illusions  regarding  life  and  mind,  and  regenerate  material 
sense  and  self.  The  old  man  with  his  deeds  must  be  put  off^. 
Nothing  sensual  or  sinful  is  immortal.  The  death  of  a  false 
material  sense  and  of  sin,  not  the  death  of  organic  matter, 
is  what  reveals  man  and  Life,  harmonious,  real  and  eternal."  ^ 

The  manner  after  which  this  purgation  is  to  be  made  is 
briefly  indicated  in  the  following  passage: 

"Belief  produces  the  result  of  belief;  and  the  penalties 
it  affixes  last  as  long  as  the  belief,  and  are  inseparable  from 
it.  The  remedy  consists  in  probing  the  trouble  to  the  bottom, 
in  finding,  and  casting  out  by  denial,  the  error  of  belief  which 
produces  a  moral  disorder,  never  honoring  it  with  the  title  of 
law,  nor  yielding  obedience  to  it."  ^ 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  96. 
'Ibid.,  p.  296. 

'Ibid.,  p.  184.    Cf.  No  and  Yes,  p.  27.    "Surely  the  probation  of, mortals 
must  go  on  after  the  change  called  death,  that  they  may  learn  the  definition 


88  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

The  result  of  this  purgative  process  is  properly  speaking 
understanding,  or  Science,  or  spiritual  sense.  This  involves  a 
complete  readjustment  of  our  mental  attitude.  We  enter  into 
new  conscious  relations.  The  world  is  no  longer  for  us  what 
it  was  and,  on  the  other  hand,  God  is  now  to  us  what  He  never 
was  before.  He  has  become  an  ever-present  help  in  all  our 
needs,  mighty  in  subduing  the  ebullitions  of  mortal  sense,  thus 
destroying  sin,  sickness  and  death. 

"Spiritual  sense,  contradicting  the  material  senses,  in- 
volves intuition,  hope,  faith,  understanding,  fruition,  reality. 
Material  sense  involves  the  belief  that  mind  is  in  matter. 
This  human  belief,  alternating  between  a  sense  of  pleasure 
and  pain,  between  hope  and  fear,  between  life  and  death, 
never  reaches  beyond  the  boundary  of  the  mortal,  or  the 
unreal.  When  the  real  is  attained  which  is  announced  by 
Science,  joy  is  no  longer  a  trembler,  nor  is  hope  a  cheat. 
Spiritual  ideas,  like  numbers  and  notes,  start  from  Principle, 
and  admit  no  materialistic  beliefs  concerning  them.  Spiritual 
ideas  lead  up  to  their  divine  origin,  God,  and  to  the  spiritual 
senses."  ^ 

In  some  of  these  passages  the  founder  of  Christian  Science 
has  borrowed  the  accent  of  the  ancient  inspired  seers,  and  there 
is  in  her  tone  a  glow  of  cheerful  assurance  which  is  not  without 
effect  on  the  minds  of  her  followers.  Such  passages  help  to 
maintain  the  fiction  of  a  new  revelation,  and  to  reconcile  the 
Christian  Scientist  to  the  many  open  contradictions  scattered 
throughout  the  book.  Men  love  a  certain  amount  of  mysticism : 
it  warms  and  cheers  the  dullness  of  everyday  life,  and  if  it  adds 
no  special  burdens  to  man's  duties,  large  circles  of  our  popula- 
tion will  welcome  it. 

Mrs.  Eddy  has  largely  succeeded  in  supplying  this  need  of 
the  many  unchurched,  and  of  such  among  church  members  as 
do  not  find  in  their  congregations  anything  equivalent  to  this 

of  immortal  being;  or  else  their  present  mistakes  would  extinguish  human 
existence.  How  long  this  false  sense  remains  after  the  transition  called 
death,  no  mortal  knoweth.  ...  Of  his  intermediate  conditions — the  purify- 
ing processes  and  terrible  revolutions  necessary  to  effect  this  end — I  am 
ignorant." 
*  Science  and  Health,  p.  298. 


Belief,  Faithy  Understanding  89 

soft  and  easy  mysticism.  It  would  be  idle  to  say  that  there  is 
no  truth  at  all  in  this.  It  may  be  only  a  half-truth,  but  this 
half-truth,  coupled  with  other  characters  of  Christian  Science, 
helps  to  explain  in  part  its  success.  In  so  far  as  this  conception 
of  the  universe  implies  a  habitual  realization  of  the  presence 
of  God,  it  represents  a  distinct  gain  in  the  daily  practice  of 
religion.  Were  it  not  for  the  many  and  serious  errors  inex- 
tricably bound  up  with  Mrs.  Eddy's  pantheism,  we  could  sin- 
cerely rejoice  in  this  renovation  of  a  practice  constantly  and 
urgently  advocated  by  all  Catholic  spiritual  writers. 

We  cannot  agree  with  the  author  when  she  declares  that 
God  cannot  create  matter,  or  that  matter  is  essentially  evil, 
or  that  sin,  sickness  and  death  are  purely  mental,  either  in 
their  essential  character  or  even  only  in  their  origin,  or  that 
they  are  merely  material  beliefs,  or  that  mind  can  cure  all 
disease ;  but  we  cannot  deny  that  the  description  of  the  world  as 
divine  ideas,  even  while  falling  far  short  of  the  true  and  full 
concept  of  Creation,  at  least  embodies  one  of  its  essential  ele- 
ments. While  regretting  the  absence  of  the  other  element, 
namely  that  of  a  Divine  Will  freely  enacting,  so  to  say,  tht  Di- 
vine idea,  we  do  agree  that  God's  creative  act  is  not  one  which, 
having  taken  place  once  for  all,  leaves  the  world  to  itself  and  its 
laws.  God  continues,  and  will  continue  unto  the  end  of  time,  to 
govern  the  world  as  Divine  Providence,  thus  maintaining — we 
could  almost  say,  continually  creating — the  world  He  has  called 
into  being.  There  is  in  God  a  Divine  Life  which  is  His  very 
essence,  inherent,  immanent  and  immutable:  of  this  we  catch 
a  glimpse,  and  only  a  glimpse,  in  the  mystery  of  the  Blessed 
Trinity;  but  beyond  this,  there  is  in  Him  an  activity  that 
cannot  be  called  necessary:  of  this  we  have  a  palpable  proof 
in  the  existence  of  the  world.  Mrs.  Eddy  recognizes  the  former, 
and  extends  it  beyond  its  limits,  and  rejects  the  latter. 

It  is  easy  to  recognize  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  errors  the  influence 
of  that  liberalizing  movement  in  Protestant  theology  which,  in 
the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century,  transformed  New  Eng- 
land from  the  rigid  ancient  unorthodox  "orthodoxy"  of  Calvin- 
ism into  a  stronghold  of  Unitarianism.  The  days  of  a  Cotton 
Mather  (1663-1728)  and  of  a  Jonathan  Edwards  (17Q8-1758) 


90  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

were  gone.  Unitarianism  had  captured  not  only  single  individ- 
uals, but  whole  congregations,  of  which  some  had  been  among 
the  strongest  supporters  of  Calvinism.  Harvard  College  was 
definitively  aligned  with  this  liberalizing,  or,  to  speak  more 
correctly,  naturalizing  current.  This  spirit  Mrs.  Eddy  con- 
sciously and  unconsciously  inhaled,  and  incorporated  into  her 
religious  system.  From  this  source  she  obtained  some  of  the 
arguments  met  with  in  her  writings ;  their  doctrines  are  her 
doctrines,  except  in  so  far  as  they  were  incompatible  with  her 
discovert/. 

Excess  marks  every  one  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  utterances.  She 
knew  not  how  to  keep  the  golden  mean.  We  must  reject,  as  con- 
trary to  fact,  her  claim  of  the  absolute  One-ness  of  Mind.  There 
are  minds  many,  as  there  are  beliefs  many.  There  are  created 
minds,  as  there  is  created  matter.  Mrs.  Eddy's  own  exposition 
of  the  progress  from  mere  belief,  through  faith,  into  under- 
standing is  unintelligible  except  on  the  supposition  that  there 
are  many  minds.  This  is  not  to  materialize  mind,  or  to  claim 
intelligence  for  matter,  a  belief  which  Mrs.  Eddy  gratuitously 
imputes  to  the  theist.  A  future  chapter  will  make  this  clearer ; 
meanwhile  we  must  turn  our  attention  to  the  subject  of  mali- 
cious animal  magnetism,  which  occupied  such  a  large  space  in 
the  life  of  Mrs.  Eddy. 


CHAPTER  VI 

MALICIOUS  ANIMAL  MAGNETISM 

New  Thought  being  without  official  textbook  or  creed, 
there  is  no  uniformity  of  teaching  to  be  found  among  its  ad- 
herents. Most  of  the  doctrines,  however,  explained  in  the 
previous  chapter  are  received  by  the  great  majority  of  them  in 
substantially,  if  not  absolutely,  the  same  form.  But  when  we 
come  to  what  Mrs.  Eddy  has  dubbed  malicious  animal  mag- 
netism, the  case  is  different;  both  the  name  and  the  thing  are 
Mrs.  Eddy's  invention  and  property.  Whether  all  Christian 
Scientists  follow  the  Leader  into  this  field  of  her  metaphysics, 
may  be  considered  doubtful;  yet  so  closely  interwoven  with  the 
whole  fabric  of  Christian  Science  is  this  doctrine  of  mental  mal- 
practice, that  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  any  one  can  reject  it  and 
still  honestly  call  himself  a  loyal  follower  of  Mrs.  Eddy. 

The  dogma  of  malicious  animal  magnetism  has  an  interest- 
ing history.  The  expression  animal  magnetism  came  to  Mrs. 
Eddy  from  Mesmer  who,  as  we  have  seen,  defended  the  existence, 
in  man,  of  a  fluid  akin  to  natural  magnetism  and  for  that  reason 
called  animal  magnetism.  Mrs.  Eddy,  with  her  craving  for 
the  occult,  her  delight  in  the  marvelous,  and  her  pursuit  of  what 
was  novel,  became  early  in  life  interested  in  mesmerism.  Her 
first  acquaintance  with  it  dates  back  to  the  Tilton  days.  There 
the  Baker  family-physician  who  looked  after  Mary  Baker  in  her 
many  nervous  attacks  was  experimenting  in  this  new-fangled 
science  and  found  in  his  patient  an  interested  and  responsive 
subject.  Animal  magnetism  continued  to  attract  her  until 
something  more  sensational,  spiritism,  came  to  supplant  it.  Mrs. 
Eddy  not  only  visited  professional  spiritists,  but  she  repeatedly 
acted,  or  pretended  to  act,  as  a  medium — even  after  Quimby 
had  given  yet  another  direction  to  her  thought.^ 

^Milmine:   History  of  Christian   Science  in  McChire's  Magazine,   Vol. 
XXIX,  p.  108.    Mrs.  Eddy  at  one  time  claimed  "that,  because  -of  her 

91 


92  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Quimbyism  itself  was  close  enough  to  mesmerism  to  continue 
— without  putting  much  faith  in  them — certain  practices  which 
originally  purported  to  transmit  the  magnetic  current.  Mrs. 
Eddy,  in  her  earlier  days,  treated  in  exactly  the  same  manner. 
"She  always  instructed  her  students,  after  treating  their  pa- 
tients mentally,  to  rub  their  heads.  In  addition  Mrs.  Eddy 
would  dip  her  hands  in  water  and  lay  them  over  the  stomach 
of  the  patient  repeating,  as  she  did  this,  the  words  'Peace,  be 
still.' "  1 

But  now  two  events  occurred  which  were  to  change  this  in- 
dulgent compromise  into  rabid  hostility.  One  of  her  former 
students,  Wallace  W.  Wright,  who  had  gone  to  Knoxville, 
Tennessee,  as  a  pioneer  in  Christian  Science,  soon  "began  to 
question  the  propriety  of  calling  this  treatment  moral  science 
instead  of  mesmerism,"  and  returning  East,  he  charged  Mrs. 
Eddy  publicly  in  the  daily  press  with  teaching,  under  a  new 
name  and  at  an  exorbitant  fee,  nothing  more  original  than 
mesmerism.  Mrs.  Eddy  defended  herself  spiritedly,  but  the 
sting  remained  in  her  bosom.^  About  the  same  time  (1872) 
Richard  Kennedy,  the  young  student,  who  had  helped  so  much 
to  make  Mrs.  Eddy's  theories  known  and  appreciated,  left  her, 
which  angered  Mrs.  Eddy  to  such  an  extent  "that  she  wished  to 
repudiate  him  and  his  methods,  and  to  do  this,  it  was  necessary 
to  repudiate  what  she  herself  had  taught."  She  now  declared 
solemnly  that  Kennedy's  treatment,  the  one  which  she  had 
taught  him  and  which  had  made  her  own  success,  was  a  per- 
nicious practice  based  on  mesmerism  ^  and  had  her  students 
change  their  manuscripts  to  this  effect  by  striking  out  the 
following  passage : 

".  .  .  and  wetting  your  hand  in  water,  rise  and  rub  their 
head.     This  rubbing  has  no  virtue;  only  as  we  believe  and 

superior  spiritual  quality,  and  because  of  the  purity  of  her  life,  she  could 
only  be  controlled  in  the  spirit  world  by  one  of  the  Apostles  and  by  Jesus 
Christ."  On  another  occasion  she  pretended  to  receive  messages  from  her 
deceased  brother  Albert  for  Mrs.  Crosby  at  whose  home  she  was  staying 
at  the  time.    Ihid.,  Vol.  XXVIII,  p.  352. 

^Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  94. 

2  Mr.  W.  W.  Wright  was  a  brother  of  Carroll  D.  Wright,  at  one  time 
U.  S.  Commissioner  of  Labor.  His  attack  was  published  in  the  Lynn  Trans- 
script,  Jan.  13,  1872,  quoted  in  McClure's  Magazine,  Vol.  XXIX,  p.  107. 

'Milmine:  op.  cit.,  in  McClure^s  Magazine,  Vol.  XXIX,  p.  113. 


Malicious  Animal  Magnetism  93 

others  believe,  we  get  nearer  to  them  by  contact,  and  now 
you  would  rub  out  a  belief,  and  this  belief  is  located  in  the 
brain.  Therefore,  as  an  M.  D.  lays  a  poultice  where  the 
pain  is,  so  you  lay  your  hands  where  the  belief  is  to  rub  it 
forever  out."  ^ 

After  thus  putting  the  stigma  of  her  disapproval  on  manipu- 
lation, as  she  called  it,  Mrs.  Eddy  found  some  difficulty  in 
explaining  away  her  own  earlier  practice.  In  1876,  in  a  booklet 
entitled  The  Science  of  Man,  she  pleaded  ignorance : 

"When  we  commenced  this  science,  we  permitted  stu- 
dents to  manipulate  the  head,  ignorant  that  it  could  do  harm, 
or  hinder  the  power  of  mind  acting  in  an  opposite  direction, 
viz.,  while  the  hands  were  at  work  and  the  mind  directing 
material  action.  We  regret  to  say  it  was  the  sins  of  a  young 
student  that  called  our  attention  to  this  question  for  the 
first  time  and  placed  it  in  a  new  moral  and  physical  aspect."  ^ 

Still  later,  emboldened  by  her  success,  she  put  the  whole 
blame  on  the  incapacity  of  her  students : 

"My  students  at  first  practiced  in  slightly  differing  forms. 
Although  /  could  heal  mentally,  without  a  sign  save  the  im- 
mediate recovery  of  the  sick,  my  students'  patients,  and 
people  generally,  called  for  a  sign — a  material  evidence 
wherewith  to  satisfy  the  sick  that  something  was  being  done 
for  them ;  and  I  said  'suffer  it  to  be  now,'  for  thus  saith  our 
Master.  Experience,  however,  taught  me  the  impossibility 
of  demonstrating  the  Science  of  metaphysical  healing  by  any 
outward  form  of  practice."  ^ 

Fastening  the  note  of  infamy  on  her  followers,  with  whom 
for  some  reason  or  other  she  grew  dissatisfied,  by  branding 
them  as  malpractitioners  or  mesmerists  was  not  for  Mrs.  Eddy 
as  innocuous  a  diversion  as  it  might  seem.  Like  a  boomerang, 
this  weapon  rebounded  and  hit  her  that  handled  it  with  terrific 
force.  She  unwittingly  educated  herself  into  a  firm  belief  in 
the  possibility  of  the  crimes  which  she  imputed  and  into  the 
conviction  that  they  were  actually  being  attempted  against 

*  Cf.  facsimile  of  Mr.  Spofford's  copy  in  McClure*8  Magazine,  ibid.,  p.  109. 

"Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  95. 

•Eddy:  Miscellaneous  Writings,  p.  380. 


94i  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

her,  with  untold  mental  anguish  to  herself.  From  the  day  that 
she  put  the  ban  on  manipulation  till  Science  and  Health  ap- 
peared, three  years  elapsed  during  which  her  belief  in  animal 
magnetism  sufficiently  evolved  to  have  an  entire  chapter  devoted 
to  it.  The  full  bearing  of  her  teaching  on  this  point  can  be 
gauged  from  the  following  quotation : 

"In  coming  years,"  she  writes,  "the  person  or  mind  that 
hates  his  neighbor  will  have  no  need  to  traverse  his  fields  to 
destrdy  his  flocks  and  herds  and  spoil  his  vines,  or  to  enter 
his  house  to  demoralize  his  household.  For  the  evil  mind 
will  do  this  through  mesmerism,  and  not  m  propria  per- 
sonae  (?)  be  seen  committing  the  deed.  Unless  this  terrible 
hour  be  met  and  restrained  by  Science  [Christian  Science,  of 
course],  mesmerism,  that  scourge  of  man,  will  leave  nothing 
sacred  when  mind  begins  to  act  under  direction  of  conscious 
power."  ^ 

Later  on  she  claimed  divine  warrant  for  inserting  this  chap- 
ter on  Animal  Magnetism  into  her  book. 

"My  reluctance,"  she  says,  "to  give  the  public  in  my  first 
edition  of  Science  and  Health  the  chapter  on  animal  magne- 
tism, and  the  divine  purpose  that  this  should  be  done,  may 
have  an  interest  for  the  reader  and  will  be  seen  in  the  follow- 
ing circumstances.  I  had  finished  that  edition  as  far  as  that 
chapter,  when  the  printer  informed  me  that  he  could  not  go 
on  with  my  work.  I  had  already  paid  him  seven  hundred 
dollars  and  yet  he  stopped  my  work.  All  efforts  to  persuade 
him  to  finish  my  book  were  in  vain.  After  months  had  passed, 
I  yielded  to  a  constant  conviction  that  I  must  insert  in  my 
last  chapter  a  partial  history  of  what  I  had  already 
observed  of  mental  malpractice.  Accordingly  I  set  to  work, 
contrary  to  my  inclination,  to  fulfil  this  painful  task,  and 
finished  my  copy  for  the  book.  As  it  afterwards  appeared, 
although  I  had  not  thought  of  such  a  result,  my  printer  re- 
sumed his  work  at  the  same  time ;  finished  printing  the  copy 
he  had  on  hand,  and  then  started  for  Lynn  to  see  me.  The 
afternoon  that  he  left  Boston  for  Lynn,  I  started  for  Boston 
with  my  finished  copy.  We  met  at  the  Eastern  depot  in 
Lynn   and  were  both   surprised — I,   to   learn   that   he  had 

^Science  and  Health   (1st  ed.),  p.  123,  quoted  in  McOlure's  Magazine, 
Vol.  XXIX,  p.  338. 


Malicious  Animal  Magnetism  96 

printed  all  the  copy  on  hand  and  had  come  to  tell  me  he 
wanted  more — he,  to  find  me  en  route  for  Boston  to  give  him 
the    closing   chapter    of   my   first    edition    of   Science    and 
Health^  1 
In  Mrs.  Eddy's  thought  Kennedy  was  indissolubly  asso- 
ciated with  this  conception  of  life.     Often  in  her  lectures  she 
would  wander  away  from  her  subject  and  would  devote  half 
the  lesson  to  bitter  invective  against  the  treacherous  Kennedy. 
He  pursued  her,  she  would  tell  them  'as  a  hound  pursues  its 
prey'   and  unloaded   on   her  the  diseases   of   the  patients   he 
cured.    To  him  she  began  to  attribute  not  only  her  illnesses,  but 
all  her  vexations  and  misfortunes,  any  lack  of  success  in  her 
ventures  and  any  difficulties  with  her  students.     The  following 
apostrophe  to  be  read  in  the  1881  edition  of  Science  amd  Health 
applies  to  him: 

"The  Nero  of  to-day,"  she  writes,  "regaling  himself 
through  a  mental  method  with  the  tortures  of  individuals,  is 
repeating  history,  and  will  fall  upon  his  own  sword,  and  it 
shall  pierce  him  through.  Let  him  remember  this,  when,  in 
the  dark  recesses  of  thought,  he  is  robbing,  conmiitting  adul- 
tery, and  killing ;  when  he  is  attempting  to  turn  friend  away 
from  friend,  ruthlessly  stabbing  the  quivering  heart;  when 
he  is  clipping  the  thread  of  life,  and  giving  to  the  grave 
youth  and  its  rainbow  hues ;  when  he  is  turning  back  the  re"- 
viving  sufferer  to  her  bed  of  pain,  clouding  her  first  morning 
after  years  of  night;  and  the  Nemesis  of  that  hour  shall 
point  to  the  tyrant's  fate,  who  falls  at  length  upon  the  sword 
of  justice."  ^ 

We  sometimes  feel  inclined  to  ask  in  wonderment  whether 
Mrs.  Eddy  could  really  believe  what  she  wrote,  and  yet  there 
cannot  be  the  slightest  doubt  that  she  did  with  an  intensity  of 
feeling  sufficient  at  times  to  demoralize  her  entirely. 

"This  malpractitioner,"  she  says  of  Kennedy  in  the  1881 
edition,  "tried  his  best  to  break  down  our  health  before  we 
learned  the  cause  of  our  sufferings.  It  was  difficult  for  us  to 
credit  the  facts  of  his  malice  or  to  admit  they  lie  within  the 
pale  of  mortal  thought." 

^Retrospection,  p.  46. 

'Cf.  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  pp.  218-232.    Science  and  Health  (1881),  p«  38. 


96  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

And  again: 

"We  say  that  he  did  these  things  because  we  have  as  much 
evidence  of  it  as  ever  we  had  of  the  existence  of  any  sin.  The 
symptoms  and  circumstances  of  the  cases,  and  the  diagnosis 
of  their  diseases  proved  the  unmistakable  fact.  His  career  of 
crime  surpasses  anything  that  minds  in  general  can  accept  at 
this  period."  ^ 

This  dread  of  mental  malpractice,  variously  known  by  Mrs. 
Eddy's  intimates  as  the  Red  Dragon,  malicious  animal  magnet- 
ism or  (abbreviated)  M.A.M.,  accompanied  the  discoverer  of 
Christian  Science  throughout  her  life,  finding  vent  in  all  her 
writings.  In  1887  a  department  devoted  to  malicious  animal 
magnetism  became  one  of  the  regular  features  of  the  Journal^ 
and  continued  for  some  years.  At  the  head  of  this  department 
regularly  occurred  the  following  quotation  from  Nehemiah: 
"Also  they  have  dominion  over  our  bodies  and  over  our  cattle 
at  their  pleasure,  and  we  are  in  great  distress."  ^ 

Even  in  the  latest  editions  of  Science  and  Health  we  find 
such  effusions  as  these : 

**Whosoever  uses  his  developed  mental  powers  like  an  es- 
caped felon,  to  commit  fresh  atrocities  as  opportunity  occurs, 
is  never  safe.  God  will  arrest  him ;  divine  justice  will  manacle 
him.  His  sins  will  be  millstones  about  his  neck,  weighing 
him  down  to  the  depths  of  ignominy  and  death.  The  aggra- 
vation of  the  error  foretells  its  doom,  and  confirms  the  an- 
cient axiom  'Whom  the  gods  would  destroy,  they  first  make 
mad.'  From  ordinary  medical  practice  the  distance  to  Chris- 
tian Science  is  full  many  a  league  in  the  line  of  light ;  but  to 
go  from  the  use  of  inanimate  drugs  in  healing,  to  the  criminal 
misuse  of  human  willpower,  is  to  drop  from  the  platform  of 
common  manhood  into  the  very  mire  of  vniquity,  to  work 
against  the  free  course  of  honesty  amd  justice  and  push 
vainly  against  the  current  runnimg  heavenward. ^^  ^ 

We  almost  fancy  ourselves  back  in  the  full  swing  of  Pagan- 
ism, when  we  find  such  sentiments  proposed  in  all  seriousness  to 

*Milmme:  op.  cit.,  in  McChire's  Magazine,  Vol.  XXIX,  p.  338. 

»76id.,  p.  692. 

*  Science  and  Health,  pp.  105-106, 


Malicioiis  Ani/mal  Magnetism  97 

men  as  a  guiding  principle  of  their  conduct.  What  difference, 
after  all,  is  there  whether  we  live  in  continual  fear  of  infernal 
demons,  always  ready  to  pounce  on  us  and  harm  us  in  life  and 
limb,  or  whether  we  dread  the  same  things  performed  in  much 
the  same  way  from  our  human  fellow-beings?  How  this  Pagan 
superstition  could  regain  its  hold,  and  become  a  leading  tenet 
in  a  system  that  pretends  to  be  scientific  and  Christian  is  only 
another  illustration  of  the  oft-repeated  assertion  that  as  soon 
as  one  forsakes  the  safe  path  of  faith,  one  strays  away  into 
the  vagaries  of  superstition. 

It  may  not  be  out  of  place  here  to  inquire  how  Mrs.  Eddy 
could  square  her  Science  with  her  superstitious  fear  of  animal 
magnetism.  If  God  is  All-in-all,  where  does  malicious  animal 
magnetism  come  in.f^  We  might  answer  with  truth  in  Miss 
Milmine's  words  that 

"when  the  original  Science  of  Man,  as  she  (Mrs.  Eddy)  had 
learned  it  from  Quimby  and  as  she  had  first  taught  it,  no 
longer  met  the  needs  of  her  own  nature,  Mrs.  Eddy  simply 
went  ahead  and  added  to  her  religion  out  of  the  exuberance 
of  her  feelings,  leaving  justification  to  the  commentators — 
and  she  has  rapped  them  soundly,  whenever  they  have  at- 
^    tempted  it."-'^ 

And  yet,  it  may  be  doubted  whether  the  doctrine  of  mental 
malpractice  is  as  inconsistent  with  Christian  Science  as  it  ap- 
pears on  the  surface.  Let  us  review  the  situation  historically : 
Mesmerism  had  entered  early  into  Mrs.  Eddy's  life ;  but  it  was 
only  after  she  began  to  teach  Christian  Science  that  it  devel- 
oped into  that  overmastering  fear  which  obsessed  her  for  the 
remainder  of  her  life,  and  made  her  quake  helplessly  before 
these  invisible  terrors  that  could  act  independently  of  space 
and  matter  by  the  power  of  a  malevolent  mind  alone.  Was  this 
fear  completely  an  adventitious  one,  entirely  out  of  keeping 
with  her  teaching?  In  short,  was  it  a  mere  personal  mortal 
belief  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  without  basis  in  fact  and  without  place  in 
Science?  The  fact  that  Mrs.  Eddy  has  assigned  to  it  such  a 
prominent  place  in  all  her  writings,  and  defends  it  against  all 

^JVlilnjine:  op.  cit.,  p.  227. 


98  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

comers,  seems  to  warrant  a  negative  answer.  And  indeed, 
though  mortal  mind  and  erroneous  beliefs  have  no  real  exist- 
ence in  Mrs.  Eddy's  sense  of  the  word,  they  are,  nevertheless, 
very  real  to  her  in  the  ordinary  sense  of  the  word.  Now,  ab- 
sent treatment  often  at  great  distances,  is  a  specialty  with 
modern  mind-healers  in  general,  and  with  Christian  Science  in 
particular.  Need  we  wonder,  then,  that  the  counterpart  of  di- 
vine Mind  which  is  always  good,  namely  mortal  mind  which  is 
always  evil,  should  also  be  believed  to  act  at  will  for  considerable 
distances?  Thus,  rightly  or  wrongly,  malicious  animal  magnet- 
ism has  taken  its  place  among  the  fundamental  tenets  of  Chris- 
tian Science. 

This  parallelism  once  established,  be  it  even  unconsciously, 
the  importance  of  animal  magnetism  was  bound  to  grow  in 
Christian  Science  lore.  Not  only  did  Mrs.  Eddy  impute  to  all 
her  disaffected  or  rejected  students  the  fell  design  of  exercising 
this  nefarious  power  against  herself,  whom  she  thought  they 
could  not  but  regard  as  their  enemy ;  not  only  did  she  assign  to 
this  subject  a  prominence  out  of  all  proportion  in  her  doctrinal 
teaching,  but  she  made  it  also  the  subject  of  direct  legislation. 
We  find  the  following  regulations  in  the  Chiirch  Mamjual: 

Art.  VIII,  sect.  8:  Members  will  not  intentionally  or 
knowingly  malpractice,  inasmuch  as  Christian  Science  can 
only  be  practiced  according  to  the  Golden  Rule:  "All  things 
whatsoever  ye  would  that  men  should  do  to  you,  do  ye  even 
so  to  them."  (Matt.  7:12)  A  member  of  The  Mother 
Church,  who  mentally  malpractices  upon,  or  treats  our 
Leader,  or  her  staff,  without  her  or  their  consent,  shall  be 
disciplined,  and  a  second  offense  as  aforesaid  shall  cause 
the  name  of  said  member  to  be  dropped  forever  from  The 
Mother  Church.^ 

Art.  XI,  sect.  9:  Members  of  this  Church  shall  not  learn 
hypnotism  on  penalty  of  being  excommunicated  from  this 
Church.     No  member  shall  enter  a  complaint  of  mental  mal- 

*As  Mrs.  Eddy  in  another  article  had  laid  down  the  rule  that  "If  the 
author  of  Science  and  Health  shall  bear  witness  to  the  offense  of  mental 
malpractice,  it  shall  be  considered  a  sufficient  evidence  thereof,"  it  can  be 
imagined  what  arbitrary  powers  these  by-laws  placed  in  her  hand.  She  used 
these  unstintingly  to  the  discomfort  of  all  her  fancied  enemies  and  of  all 
apostates  from  her  Church. 


Malicious  Animal  Magnetism  99 

practice  for  a  sinister  purpose.  If  the  author  of  Science 
and  Health  shall  bear  witness  to  the  offense  of  mental  mal- 
practice, it  shall  be  considered  a  sufficient  evidence  thereof. 
Art.  XXIV,  sect.  3:  Teachers  shall  instruct  their  pupils 
how  to  defend  themselves  against  mental  malpractice,  never 
to  return  evil  for  evil,  but  to  know  the  truth  that  makes 
free,  and  thus  to  be  a  law,  not  unto  others,  but  to  themselves. 

Mrs.  Eddy  went  further.  She  would  have  liked  to  see  the 
strong  arm  of  the  law  of  the  land  lifte4  up  against  these  mental 
assassins. 

"Courts  and  juries,"  she  wrote,  "judge  and  sentence  mor- 
tals, in  order  to  restrain  crime,  to  prevent  deeds  of  violence, 
or  to  punish  them.  To  say  that  these  tribunals  have  no 
jurisdiction  over  mortal  mind,  would  be  to  contradict  prece- 
dent, and  to  admit  that  the  power  of  human  law  is  re- 
stricted to  matter,  while  mortal  mind  which  is  the  real 
outlaw  defies  justice  and  is  recommended  to  mercy.  Can 
matter  commit  a  crime?  Can  matter  be  punished .^^  Can 
you  separate  the  mentality  from  the  body  over  which  courts 
hold  jurisdiction?  Mortal  mind,  not  matter,  is  the  criminal 
in  every  case,  and  human  law  rightly  estimates  crime,  and 
courts  reasonably  sentence  it  according  to  its  motive."  ^ 

This  was  no  mere  empty  rhetoric,  witness  the  famous  witch- 
craft trial  which  created  such  an  amount  of  surprised  merri- 
ment, back  in  1878.  When  Mr.  Spofford,  who  had  brought 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Eddy  together;  who  had  so  laboriously  disposed 
of  the  first  edition  of  Science  and  Health;  who  had  been  on  such 
intimate  terms  with  his  teacher  as  to  deserve  to  be  called  by 
her  Harry  (Harrison)  and  to  receive  her  letters  signed  simply 
Mary ;  when  this  man  at  last  lost  his  place  in  the  sun  and  was 
ignominiously  expelled  for  "immorality,"  that  means  disloyalty 
to  Mrs.  Eddy,  he  fell  at  once  into  the  category  of  mesmerists 
or  "mental  marauders."  The  higher  the  place  he  had  occupied 
in  Mrs.  Eddy's  affections,  the  deeper  the  resentment  which  now 
rankled  in  her  breast.  Only  Kennedy  was  more  sincerely  hated. 
In  the  case  of  Spofford  the  most  formidable  attack  took  the 
form  of  a  legal  prosecution. 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  105. 


100  Christian  Science  and  tJie  Catholic  Faith 

A  certain  Lucretia  Brown,  cured  for  a  time  by  one  of  Mrs. 
Eddy's  students,  had  suffered  a  severe  relapse.  Mrs.  Eddy 
being  consulted  had  the  solution  of  this  mystery  on  the  tip  of 
her  tongue:  "Spoiford  was  bewitching  her."  She  did  more 
than  just  pronounce  sentence ;  summoning  to  her  house  the  apos- 
tolic number  of  twelve,  she  began  to  treat  Spofford  "adversely." 
"She  required  each  of  these  twelve  students,  one  after  another, 
to  take  Mr.  SpofFord  up  mentally  for  two  hours,  declaring  in 
thought  that  he  had  no  power  to  heal,  must  give  up  his  practice, 
and  so  forth." 

When  this  novel  form  of  intensified  absent  treatment  proved 
unavailing,  she  asked  her  lawyer  to  draw  up  in  Miss  Brown's 
name  a  bill  of  complaint  in  which  Spofford  was  accused  of  being 
a  mesmerist,  of  controlling  "by  his  said  art  and  the  power  of 
his  mind  the  minds  and  bodies  of  other  persons  .  .  .  for  the 
purpose  of  injuring  the  persons  and  property  and  social  rela- 
tions of  others,"  and  in  particular  of  having  "at  divers  times 
and  places,  wrongfully  and  maliciously  and  with  intent  to  in- 
jure the  plaintiff,  caused  the  plaintiff  .  .  .  great  suffering  of 
body  and  mind  and  severe  spinal  pains  and  neuralgia  and  a 
temporary  suspension  of  mind."  ^ 

The  trial  was  set  for  May  14,  1878.  On  that  memorable 
day  Mrs.  Eddy  and  Mr.  Arens,  her  new  ephemeral  favorite,  who 
himself  was  soon  to  be  classed  among  the  mesmerists,  both  under 
power  of  attorney  for  Miss  Brown,  and  attended  by  some  twenty 
witnesses  appeared  at  the  opening  session  of  the  Supreme  Ju- 
dicial Court  in  Salem  to  lay  this  case  before  the  judges  of  the 
Bench.  As  might  have  been  expected,  the  case  was  demurred 
to,  and  was  dismissed  by  the  judge  with  the  smiling  remark 
"that  it  was  not  within  the  power  of  the  courts  to  control  Mr. 
Spofford's  mind." 

Miss  Milmine  comments  as  follows  on  this  case : 

"So,  after  a  lapse  of  nearly  two  centuries,  another 
charge  of  witchcraft  was  made  before  the  Court  in  Salem 
village.  But  it  was  an  anachronism  merely,  and  elicited 
such  ridicule  that  it  was  hard  to  realize  that,  because  of 

1  C^   Milr  op.  cit.,  pp.  QS9-243. 

''        T 


Malicious  Animal  Magnetism  101 

charges  quite  as  fanciful,  one  hundred  and  twenty-six  per- 
sons were  once  lodged  in  Salem  jail,  nineteen  persons  were 
hanged,  and  an  entire  community  was  plunged  into  anguish 
and  terror.  .  .  .  Mrs.  Eddy's  attempt  to  revive  the  witch 
horror  was  only  a  courtroom  burlesque  upon  the  grimmest 
tragedy  in  New  England  history.  It  is  interesting  only  in 
that  it  demonstrates  how  surely  the  same  effects  follow  the 
same  causes.  When  Mrs.  Eddy  had  succeeded  in  overcoming 
in  her  students'  minds  the  tradition  of  sound  reasoning 
of  which  they  and  their  century  were  the  fortunate  heirs, 
when  she  had  convinced  them  that  there  were  no  physical 
causes  for  physical  ills,  she  had  unwittingly  plunged  them 
back  into  the  torturing  superstitions  which  it  had  taken 
the  world  so  long  to  overcome.  .  .  .  Among  this  little  group 
of  people  who  had  been  friends  and  fellow-seekers  after 
God,  there  broke  out  in  a  milder  form  that  same  scourge 
of  fear  and  distrust  which  demoralised  Salem  from  1692— 
1694.  In  the  attempt  to  bring  the  glad  tidings  of  emancipa- 
tion from  the  operation  of  physical  law,  which  is  sometimes 
cruel,  Mrs.  Eddy  had  come  back  to  the  cruelest  of  all  de- 
basing superstitions,  that  of  attributing  disease  and  mis- 
fortune to  a  malevolent  human  agency."  ^ 

The  terrors  with  which  the  belief  in  the  reality  of  animal 
magnetism  inspired  Mrs.  Eddy  are  pathetic  in  the  extreme.  In 
the  course  of  time  she  came  to  distinguish  between  various 
brands  of  this  nefarious  power.  "All  mental  malpractice,"  she 
now  declared,  "arises  from  ignorance  or  malice  aforethought." 
She  defines  it  as  "the  action  of  one  mortal  mind  taking  control 
of  another,  without  the  other's  knowledge  or  consent."  It  is 
practiced  from  either  "mistaken  or  wicked  motives,"  and,  con- 
sequently, it  is  either  ignorant  or  malicious.^  At  first  she  ac- 
counted for  her  repeated  fits  of  illness  by  the  theory  that  she 

^Milmine:  op.  cit.,  243-244.  Mr.  Spoflford  appeared  again  in  court  in 
October  of  the  same  year  (1878),  this  time  as  a  complainant  against  Mr. 
Eddy  and  Mr.  Arens  charging  both  with  conspiracy  to  murder  him.  The 
details  of  this  sensational  trial  can  be  read  in  Milmine,  of.  cit.,  pp.  250-261, 
and  Peabody,  The  Eelitjio-Medical  Masquerade,  pp.  185-188.  Mrs.  Eddy 
and  Mr.  Arens  were  indicted,  but  for  some  unexplained  reason  this  indict- 
ment was  never  prosecuted,  but,  upon  the  payment  of  gp^  by  Mr,  Eddy, 
was  not  prossed. 

'^Science  and  Health,  p.  451. 


10^  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

bore  in  her  own  person  the  ills  from  which  she  released  her 
patients.     But  time  brought  different  views : 

"By  1877  Mrs.  Eddy  not  only  believed  that  she  suffered 
from  the  physical  ills  from  which  her  students  were  released, 
but  declared  that  her  students  followed  her  in  thought  and 
selfishly  took  from  her  to  feed  their  own  weakness.  The 
work  upon  the  second  edition  could  not  go  on,  because  they 
nourished  themselves  upon  her  and  sapped  her  powers."  ^ 

Sometimes  Mrs.  Eddy  is  near  despair.  She  must  flee  from 
Lynn,  because  mesmerism  is  waxing  too  powerful  there;  she 
must  abandon  Boston  for  the  same  reason;  even  as  late  as  1908 
when  Mrs.  Eddy  was  eighty-seven  years  old,  she  has  to  give  up 
Pleasant  View,  driven  away  by  the  same  mysterious  force.  Mrs. 
Eddy  was  sure  that  mesmerism  interfered  not  only  with  her 
health,  but  also  with  her  property. 

"Mesmerism  caused  the  water-pipes  to  freeze  and  the 
wash-boiler  to  leak.  She  was  convinced  that  all  the  postal 
clerks  and  telegraph  operators  in  Boston  had  been  mes- 
merized, and  on  one  occasion,  when  she  was  sending  an  im- 
portant telegram  to  Chicago,  she  sent  Luther  M.  Marston, 
one  of  her  students,  to  West  Newton,  to  dispatch  it  via 
Worcester,  so  that  it  need  not  go  through  Boston  at  aU.'*  ^ 

On  another  occasion  she  ordered  the  publisher  of  the  Chris- 
tian Science  Journal,  "to  take  the  magazine  and  flee  with  it  at 
once  into  some  other  city;  if  he  stayed  in  Boston  a  month 
longer,  she  declared,  mesmerism  would  wreck  the  periodical." 
Mr.  Dixon,  the  publisher,  went  to  Philadelphia,  but  hardly  had 
he  found  a  suitable  oflice  and  printer,  when  he  was  ordered  to 
bring  the  Journal  back  to  Boston  at  once.^ 

Not  all  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  troubles  came  from  her  supposed 
enemies.  She  knew  that  her  friends  were  causing  her  untold 
sufferings.  In  course  of  time  she  came  to  feel  absolutely  cer- 
tain who  it  was  that  caused  her  a  particular  affliction.  It  was 
on  the  strength  of  these  feelings  that  Mrs.  Eddy  inserted  in  her 
Church  Manual  this  arbitrary  ruling  that  "if  the  author  of 

^Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  214. 
^Jhid.    n.  301. 

584. 


^Ibid.,  p.  301. 

*Ibid.,  in  McClure's  Magazine,  VoL  XXX,  p. 


Malicious  Animal  Magnetism  103 

Science  and  Health  shall  bear  witness  to  the  offense  of  mental 
malpractice,  it  shall  be  considered  a  sufficient  evidence  there- 
of." ^     So  also  she  wrote  to  Spofford: 

"...  those  who  call  on  me  mentally  in  suffering  are  in  belief 
killing  me !  .  .  .  Tell  this  to  Miss  Brown,  Mr.  McLauthlen, 
Mrs.  Atkinson  and  Miss  Norman,  but  do  not  let  them  know 
they  can  call  on  me  thus,  if  they  are  doing  this  ignorantly ; 
and  if  they  do  it  consciously,  tell  McLauthlen  and  them  all 
it  would  be  no  greater  crime  for  them,  to  come  directly  and 
thrust  a  dagger  into  my  heart;  they  are  just  as  surely  in 
belief  killing  me  and  committing  murder."  ^ 

Another  letter  belonging  to  the  same  period  and  addressed 
to  the  same  person  breathes  exactly  the  same  spirit: 

"I  am  in  Boston  today  feeling  very,  very  little  better  for 
the  five  weeks  that  are  gone.  I  cannot  finish  the  Key  ^ ;  yet  I 
will  be  getting  myself,  and  all  of  a  sudden  I  am  seized  as 
sensibly  by  some  others'  belief  as  the  hand  could  lay  hold  of 
me.  My  sufferings  have  made  me  utterly  weaned  from  this 
plane,  and  if  my  husband  was  only  willing  to  give  me  up, 
I  would  gladly  yield  up  the  ghost  of  this  terrible  earth  plan^ 
and  join  those  nearer  my  Life."  ^ 

As  long  as  Mrs.  Eddy  adhered  to  the  belief  that  malicious 
animal  magnetism  was  inseparably  bound  up  with  manipula- 
tion, there  was  some  limit  set  to  her  anxieties;  but  when  she 
threw  Mr.  Spofford  overboard,  this  restriction,  too,  had  to  go. 
"Mesmerism,"  she  now  wrote,  "is  practiced  through  manipula- 
tion— and  without  it.  And  we  have  learned,  by  new  observa- 
tion, the  fool  who  says  *There  is  no  God'  attempts  more  evil 
without  a  sign  than  with  it."  *  After  this  final  pronouncement 
Mrs.  Eddy's  dread  of  mental  malpractice  grew  apace.  If  her 
friends,  unwittingly,  could  draw  from  her  vital  forces  and,  thus, 
become  a  source  of  acute  suffering,  need  we  wonder  that  she 
lived  in  daily  and  deadly  awe  of  her  supposed  enemies.?  She 
suffered  from  the  obsession  of  persecution  which  alone  can  ac- 

^  Church  Manual,  Art.  XI,  sect.  9. 

"Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  214.     Italics  are  Mrs.  Eddy's.     Cf.  p.  49. 

*  Ibid.,  p.  215,    The  "Key"  referred  to  is  the  Key  to  the  Scripture,  part  of 
Science  and  Health.  » 

*  Science  and  Health  (ed,  1878),  quoted  by  Milmine,  p.  226. 


104  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

count  for  some  of  her  strange  actions,  and  which  affected  her 
whole  surrounding  and  all  her  teaching. 

"The  atmosphere  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  house,"  writes  Miss 
Milmine,  "derived  its  peculiar  character  from  her  belief  in 
malicious  animal  magnetism  which  exerted  a  sinister  influ- 
ence over  every  one  under  her  roof.  Her  students  could 
never  get  away  from  it.  Morning,  noon  and  night  the  thing 
had  to  be  reckoned  with,  and  the  very  domestic  arrange- 
ments were  ordered  to  elude  or  to  combat  the  demoniacal 
power.  If  Mrs.  Eddy  had  kept  in  her  house  a  dangerous 
maniac  or  some  horrible  physical  monstrosity  which  was 
always  breaking  from  confinement  and  stealing  about  the 
chambers  and  hallways,  it  could  scarcely  have  cast  a  more 
depressing  anxiety  over  her  household.  Those  of  her  stu- 
dents who  believed  in  mesmerism  were  always  on  their  guard 
with  each  other,  filled  with  suspicion  and  distrust.  Those 
who  did  not  believe  in  it,  dared  not  admit  their  disbelief. 
If  a  member  of  that  household  denied  the  doctrine,  or  even 
showed  a  lack  of  interest  in  it,  he  was  at  once  pronounced  a 
mesmerist  and  requested  to  leave."  ^ 

An  even  more  drastic  and  personal  estimate  is  given  us  by 
Mr.  Peabody  who  writes : 

"I  have  talked  with  a  gentleman  who  years  ago  with  his 
family  lived  for  some  six  months  in  the  house  with  Mrs. 
Eddy ;  and  he  said  to  me  with  great  earnestness,  'I  lived  there 
six  months  and,  I  tell  2/ou,  Sir,  I  rather  would  spend  ten 
years  in  hell  than  another  six  months  in  Mrs.  Eddy^s  com- 
pany. She  nearly  drove  my  children  into  frenzy  with  her 
malicious  animal  magnetism  business.^  "  ^ 

Mrs.  Eddy,  driven  to  bay,  as  it  were,  declared  that  she  had 
to  protect  herself  by  treating  her  enemies  adversely.  Con- 
vinced that  she  could  tell  from  whom  the  magnetic  influence 
came,  she  would  ask  her  students  at  that  particular  time  to 
treat  so  and  so  adversely.  This  treatment  became  an  impor- 
tant feature  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  home. 

"A  regular  society  was  organized  among  Mrs.  Eddy's 
most  trusted  students  and  was  called  the  P.M.  (Private  Meet- 

"  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  301. 
^Peabody:  op.  cit.,  p.  173. 


Malicious  Animal  Magnetism  105 

ing).  This  society  met  daily  after  breakfast  in  the  morn- 
ing and  after  supper  at  night,  gathered  in  Mrs.  Eddy's 
parlor  and  'took  up  the  enemy'  in  thought.  Mrs.  Eddy  was 
not  always  present  at  these  sittings,  but  she  usually  gave  out 
the  line  of  treatment.  She  would  say  for  example:  'Treat 
Kennedy.  Say  to  him.  Your  sins  have  found  you  out.  You 
are  affected  as  you  wish  to  affect  me.  Your  evil  thought  reacts 
upon  you.  You  are  bilious,  you  are  consumptive,  you  have 
liver  trouble,  you  have  been  poisoned  by  arsenic.  .  .  .'  "  ■'^ 

It  seems  to  have  been  especially  at  night  that  this  animal 
magnetism  came  to  torment  Mrs.  Eddy.  Her  nocturnal  ill- 
nesses became  more  frequent  and  more  violent  with  the  years, 
and  one  of  the  principal  duties  of  the  resident  students  was  to 
treat  Mrs.  Eddy  for  these  attacks. 

"These  seizures  usually  came  on  about  midnight.  Mrs. 
Eddy  would  first  call  Mr.  Frye,  and  he,  after  hurrying  into 
his  clothes,  would  go  about  the  house,  knocking  at  the  doors 
of  all  the  students,  and  calling  them  to  dress  immediately 
and  hurry  down  to  Mrs.  Eddy's  room.  After  arousing  the 
inmates  of  the  house,  he  would  hasten  through  the  deserted 
streets,  summoning  one  after  another  of  the  healers  whom 
Mrs.  Eddy  considered  most  effective.  When  they  arrived 
at  the  college,  they  would  find  a  group  of  sleepy  men  standi 
ing  in  the  hall  outside  Mrs.  Eddy's  door,  talking  in  low 
tones.  They  were  called,  one  by  one,  by  Miss  Bartlett  or 
Mr.  Frye,  and  admitted  singly  into  Mrs.  Eddy's  chamber. 
Sometimes  she  lay  in  a  comatose  condition,  and  would 
remain  thus  for  several  hours,  while  each  student,  in  his 
turn,  sat  beside  the  bed  and  silently  treated  her  for  about 
twenty  minutes.  He  then  left  the  room  by  another  door 
than  the  one  by  which  he  had  entered,  and  another  student 
took  his  place.  .  .   .^ 

This  picture  of  the  new  freedom  which  Christian  Science 
was  bringing  into  the  world  ought  to  open  the  eyes  of  those 
who  stiU  speak  of  Christian  Science  as  a  religion  of  healthy- 
mindedness.  The  bane  of  this  fear  manifested  itself  not  only 
in  Mrs.  Eddy,  but  also  in  those  that  had  to  live  with  her.    As 


*Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  304. 
» Ihid.,  pp.  301-302. 


106  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Asa  Gilbert  Eddy  was  the  closest  associate  of  his  wife  in  her 
life  work,  so  also  was  he  most  impressed  by  the  dreadful  possi- 
bilities of  this  subtle  malignant  power.  He  may  not  have  be- 
lieved in  it  more  sincerely  than  his  wife,  but  with  less  power  of 
reaction  and  recuperation,  his  health  suffered  more  under  the 
strain.  He  sneaked  through  the  city  streets  like  one  whose 
every  step  was  dogged  by  unknown  pursuers.  He  spoke  in  a 
whisper  and  anxiously  looked  round  about  when  transacting 
any  business  even  of  little  importance,  afraid  that  a  mesmerist 
might  be  there  to  cross  his  purpose.  Especially  after  his  arrest 
Mr.  Eddy  fell  into  an  ever  deepening  gloom,  and  became  lit- 
erally the  victim  of  his  own  fears.  Christian  Science  treatment 
was  of  no  avail  in  his  case:  the  fear  it  had  instilled  did  its  slow 
but  deadly  work  and  was  not  counterbalanced  by  that  spirit  of 
optimism  and  that  joy  of  life  which  is  popularly  believed  to  be 
the  badge  of  Christian  Science.  He  lingered  on  for  some  years. 
Even  the  eyes  of  a  Christian  Scientist  could  not  help  feeling 
that  he  was  failing.  At  last  Mrs.  Eddy,  thoroughly  alarmed, 
threw  all  her  science  to  the  winds,  and,  in  open  contradiction 
with  herself  and  her  teaching,  she  summoned  a  regular  physi- 
cian to  his  bedside,  who  diagnosed  his  illness  as  a  very  common 
form  of  heart  disease.  But  Mr.  Eddy  was  beyond  human  help : 
he  died  on  June  3,  1882,  after  only  five  and  a  half  years  of 
wedded  life.  Mrs.  Eddy  was  beside  herself  from  fear.  All  her 
worst  suspicions  she  found  verified  in  the  case  of  her  deceased 
husband.  The  mesmerists  who  had  been  haunting  her  so  per- 
sistently had  at  last  found  a  victim  in  her  husband.  She  was 
convinced,  or  pretended  to  be  convinced,  that  animal  magnet- 
ism had  killed  him.  To  prove  this  to  the  world,  she  violated 
another  fundamental  rule  of  her  organization,  a  rule  which  only 
the  year  before  she  had  inserted  in  her  Church  Manual,  and 
which  reads:  "A  metaphysician  never  gives  medicine,  recom- 
mends or  trusts  in  hygiene,  or  believes  in  the  ocular  or  the  post- 
mortem exammation  of  patients.'^  In  the  same  edition  of 
Science  and  Health  she  had  declared  that  "many  a  hopeless 
case  of  disease  is  induced  by  a  single  post-mortem  examina- 
tion." ^    Despite  these  strong  words,  Mr.  Eddy  was  no  sooner 

^Science  and  Health  (ed.  1881),  p.  269  and  p.  163. 


Malicious  Animal  Magnetism  107 

dead  than  Mrs.  Eddy,  with  her  customary  inconsistency,  tele- 
graphed for  a  physician  to  come  and  perform  an  autopsy.  By 
this  post-mortem  examination  the  doctor  proved  to  Mrs.  Eddy 
that  her  husband  had  died  of  organic  heart  disease.  Notwith- 
standing this  testimony  and  the  evidence  submitted  to  her,  Mrs. 
Eddy  on  the  very  same  day  sent  out  the  following  statement: 

"My  husband's  death  was  caused  by  malicious  animal 
magnetism.  Dr.  C.  J.  Eastman  (a  Christian  Scientist)  who 
attended  the  case  after  it  had  taken  an  alarming  turn,  de- 
clares the  symptoms  to  be  the  same  as  those  of  arsenic 
poisoning.  On  the  other  hand,  Dr.  Rufus  K.  Noyes,  late  of 
the  City  Hospital,  who  held  an  autopsy  over  the  body  to-day, 
affirms  that  the  corpse  is  free  from  all  material  poisoning, 
although  Dr.  Eastman  still  holds  to  his  original  belief.  / 
know  it  was  poison  that  killed  him,  not  material  poison,  but 
mesmeric  poison.   .  .  ."  -"^ 

Here  we  may  close  this  subject  of  animal  magnetism.  By 
introducing  it  into  her  teaching,  Mrs.  Eddy  nullified  and  stulti- 
fied her  doctrines  concerning  God,  the  universal  Mind,  Life, 
Love  and  only  Reality.  By  it  she  opened  the  floodgates  through 
which  poured  in  all  kinds  of  superstitious  fears,  groundless 
suspicions  and  unwarranted  judgments.  It  led  to  practices 
which  in  reality  voided  her  religion  of  that  love  which  in  theory 
she  preached.  Hatreds,  embittered  feelings,  false  aspersions, 
and  criminal  attempts  are  the  natural  fruits  of  this  scandalous 
doctrine.  "The  opponents  of  Christian  Science  must  be  char- 
itable," writes  Mrs.  Eddy,  "if  they  would  be  Christian.  If 
the  letter  of  Christian  Science  appears  inconsistent,  they 
should  gain  its  spiritual  meaning."  ^  How  can  we  better  attain 
to  this  spiritual  meaning  than  by  its  practical  application. 
The  test  proposition  "by  their  fruits  you  shall  know  them" 
which  Mrs.  Eddy  wants  to  have  applied  to  her  successful  cures, 
we  must  also  apply  to  her  failures,  and  first  of  all,  to  her  mental 
and  moral  failures.  There  can  be  nothing  more  damning  than 
this  test  when  applied  to  the  doctrine  of  malicious  animal  mag- 
netism. 

*Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  286.  ^» 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  354, 


108  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

And  yet,  Mrs.  Eddy  could  not  well  have  done  without  it. 
She  needed  it  to  round  out  her  system ;  she  needed  it  to  answer 
objections;  she  needed  it  to  explain  her  own  teaching  concern- 
ing human  beliefs;  she  needed  it,  above  all,  to  justify  in  the 
eyes  of  her  own  followers  her  frequent  lapses  into  sickness  which, 
according  to  her  teaching,  has  no  real  existence.  This  test 
alone  will  satisfy  every  earnest  seeker  after  truth,  even  if  it 
fail  to  influence  the  declared  partisan  of  a  movement. 


CHAPTER  VII 


THE   FACT   OF  MENTAL  CUKES 


"Coming  down  to  more  recent  times,"  wrote  Thomson  Jay 
Hudson  some  thirty  years  ago,  "We  find  that  cures  seemingly 
miraculous  are  as  common  today  as  at  any  period  of  the 
world's  history.  In  fact,  one  unbroken  line  of  such  phe- 
nomena is  presented  to  the  student  of  psychotherapeutics 
which  extends  from  the  earliest  period  of  recorded  history 
to  the  present  time.  At  no  time  of  the  world's  history  has 
there  been  such  a  widespread  interest  in  the  subject  as  now, 
and  the  hopeful  feature  is  that  the  subject  is  no  longer 
relegated  to  the  domain  of  superstition,  but  is  being  studied 
by  all  classes  of  people,  from  the  ablest  scientists  down 
to  the  humblest  peasants." 

Of  the  various  schools  of  mental  healing  he  says :  ".  .  .  all 
these  schools  effect  cures  of  the  most  wonderful  character,  many 
of  them  taking  rank  with  the  miracles  of  the  Master."  ^ 

It  goes  without  saying  that  Christian  Science  and  New 
Thought  both  agree  in  claiming  these  honors  for  themselves. 
Says  Mrs.  Eddy: 

"By  thousands  of  well-authenticated  cases  of  healing  she 
(the  author)  herself  and  her  students  have  proved  the 
worth  of  her  teachings.  These  for  the  most  part  have  been 
cases  abandoned  as  hopeless  by  regular  medical  attendants. 
.  .  .  Today  there  is  hardly  a  city,  village,  or  hamlet,  in 
which  are  not  to  be  found  living  witnesses  and  monuments 
to  the  virtue  and  power  of  Truth,  as  applied  through  this 
Christian  system  for  healing  disease."  ^ 

Mr.  Evans,  who  in  some  respects  may  be  considered  the 
founder  of  New  Thought,  goes  so  far  as  to  express  a  belief  that 
the  mental  healer  will  eventually  oust  the  regular  physician: 

*  Hudson:  The  Law  of  Psychic  Phenomena  (Chicago,  1893),  p.  147. 

*  Science  and  Health,  Preface,  p.  x  and  p.  149. 

109 


110  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"The  first,"  he  says,  "somehow  brings  into  action  the 
divine  principles  of  faith  and  imagination  and  directs  their 
force  upon  the  body,  and  the  world  accepts  the  result  as  al- 
most, if  not  quite,  miraculous.  The  time  may  come  when 
there  will  be  an  entire  revolution  of  public  opinion,  and 
the  now  unorthodox  physician,  who  appeals,  whether  he 
knows  it  or  not,  more  directly  to  the  principles  that  in  the 
highest  degree  influence  the  bodily  condition,  will  be  ac- 
cepted as  the  man  who  is  legally  authorized  to  prescribe  for 
*the  ills  that  flesh  is  heir  to.'  He  who  can  best  minister  to  a 
mind  diseased,  and  control  and  direct  these  mental  forces  so 
as  to  modify  the  corporeal  condition,  is  the  best  physician. 
And  if  he  is  'constrained  by  the  love  of  Christ'  or  the  same 
benevolent  impulse  that  actuated  him,  he  is  in  the  regular  line 
of  apostolic  succession,  even  though  no  mitred  priest  has  laid 
hands  upon  his  head  and  consecrated  him  to  a  work,  the 
importance  of  which  the  ecclesiastical  functionary  under- 
stands but  little  or  nothing."  -^ 

The  problem,  therefore,  which  presents  itself  now,  is  whether 
and  how  far,  these  pretentious  assertions  are  based  on  facts :  for 
evidently  there  is  no  room  for  any  hypothesis  purporting  to 
explain  the  manner  of  the  cures  until  the  reality  of  the  cure 
is  first  established. 

I.       THE    CURES    OF    CHEISTIAN    SCIENCE  ^ 

Reports  of  cures  by  Christian  Scientists  are  abundant.  A 
full  chapter  in  Science  and  Health  is  consecrated  to  them; 
every  issue  of  the  Journal  contains  a  number  of  them;  even  in 
the  Congressional  Record  is  found  a  well-selected  list  of  them. 

We  may  at  once  discard  the  cures,  eighty-four  in  all,  re- 
corded in  the  textbook.  Even  overlooking  the  fact  that  the  re- 
ports  are  unsigned  and  that  most  of  them  are  extremely  vague, 
it  is  plain  from  the  nature  of  these   testimonials   that   they 

^  Evans:  The  Divine  Law  of  Cure  (Boston,  1881),  p.  211. 

^Consult  on  this  subject  Science  and  Health,  passim,  especially  chapter 
xviii;  any  issue  of  the  Christian  Science  Journal;  Congressional  Record, 
Vol.  LIT,  Part  I,  pp.  1039  ff.  Also  Huber,  in  Popular  Science  Monthly, 
1899,  p.  755,  article:  "Christian  Science  from  a  Physician's  Point  of  View." 
Cabot,  in  McClure's  Magazine,  Vol  XXXI,  p.  472  ff.  article:  "One  Hundred 
Christian  Science  Cures."  Powell:  Christian  Science,  the  Faith  and  the 
Founder  (New  York,  1907).  Paget:  Faith  and  Works  of  Christian  Science 
(New  York,  1909). 


The  Fact  of  Mental  Cures  111 

obtained  their  honorable  position  in  the  textbook  for  no  other 
purpose  than  to  promote  its  sale.  In  almost  every  instance 
the  cure  is  ascribed  directly  to  the  reading  of  the  book.^ 

The  cures  reported  in  the  Journal  enjoy  over  those  just 
mentioned  the  advantage  of  not  being  anonymous,  full  name 
and  address  being  given  in  every  instance.  Some  of  these 
reputed  cures  are  plainly  ridiculous;  most  of  the  others  can 
easily  be  accounted  for  on  very  natural  grounds ;  a  few  of  them 
might  deserve  a  more  minute  discussion.  Dr.  Paget  has  exam- 
ined scientifically  two  hundred  such  cases  reported  between 
April  and  August,  1908,  and  Dr.  Cabot  one  hundred  others, 
both  of  these  authorities  finding  very  little  in  them  to  arrest 
their  attention.^ 

But  we  have  a  better  selection  in  the  Congressional  Record, 
In  the  year  1915  Senator  Works,  a  convinced  Christian  Scien- 
tist, spoke  against  extending  further  governmental  protection 
to  the  medical  profession,  and,  in  the  course  of  his  argument, 
called  the  attention  of  his  colleagues  to  the  works  and  principles 
of  Christian  Science,  giving  as  documentary  evidence  fifty-seven 
reports,  some  of  which,  twenty-one  in  number,  he  had  selected 
"from  the  experience  of  people  of  his  own  acquaintance,"  and 
the  others  had  been  obtained  for  him  by  "a  good  and  reliable 
friend.  They  are,"  he  adds,  "so  convincing  of  the  efficacy  of 
Christian  Science  healing  that  I  cannot  see  how  any  fair  and 
candid  mind  can  continue  to  doubt  it."  ^ 

The  selection  is  evidently  made  with  great  care,  and,  as  far 
as  outward  appearance  goes,  can  leave  little  to  be  desired.  Not 
only  are  the  names  and  addresses  of  the  patients  given,  but  in 
many  cases  also  those  of  the  physicians  under  whose  care  they 

*  For  a  more  detailed  examination  consult  Searle :  The  Truth  about  Chris- 
tian Science  (New  York,  1916),  pp.  246-293. 

*  Christian  Scientists  not  only  cure  themselves,  but  also  their  animals  by 
means  of  their  Science.  A  ludicrous  case  is  reported  in  the  Journal  of 
October,  1887.    It  is  as  follows: 

"Dear  Joubnal:  Our  dog  was  bitten  by  a  rattlesnake  on  the  tongue  a 
short  time  ago,  and  the  verdict,  as  is  usual  in  such  cases,  was  death;  but 
through  the  understanding  of  God's  promise  that  we  shall  handle  serpents 
and  not  be  harmed,  if  we  but  believe,  I  was  able  to  demonstrate  over  the 
belief  in  four  days.  The  dog  is  now  as  well  as  ever."  This  is  not  the  only 
case  of  its  kind.  Cf.  Paget:  op.  cit.,  pp.  101-129.  Cabot,  in  McClure'$ 
Magazine,  op.  cit.,  pp.  472  ff. 

'  Congressional  Record,  Vol.  LII,  Part  I,  p.  1034. 


112  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

were.  Physicians  would,  undoubtedly,  find  the  description  of 
the  symptoms  in  many  cases  insufficient ;  but  the  lay  mind  can- 
not but  be  impressed  by  the  reading  of  them,  especially  as  Sena- 
tor Works  owed  his  own  strong  feelings  in  the  matter  to  his  per- 
sonal experience:  "I  was  healed,"  he  testified,  "in  Christian 
Science,  when  death  was  near,  and  after  all  hope  of  relief  from 
medical  practitioners  had  been  abandoned  after  long  and  faith- 
ful trial  of  such  remedies."  ^ 

It  is  clearly  impossible  to  give  here  more  than  a  summary  of 
the  diseases  of  which  these  persons  claim  to  have  been  cured,  and 
the  full  report  of  one  or  two  of  the  more  remarkable  cases  in  a 
collection  where  all  are  remarkable.  I  disclaim  in  advance 
any  intention  of  passing  judgment  on  their  intrinsic  merit,  as 
only  physicians  have  the  necessary  qualifications  for  such  a 
tasik.  If  I  quote  any  at  all,  it  is  partly  to  bring  them  to  the 
attention  of  persons  that  are  interested  in  these  studies,  partly 
to  acquaint  the  reader  with  the  nature  of  the  material  on  which 
the  physicians,  whose  verdict  will  be  quoted  later,  base  their 
judgment. 

FIRST  CASE  ^ 

Miss  Julia  C.  Meek — Chronic  Myelitis 
About  eight  years  ago,  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  I  was 
taken  with  what  physicians  called  chronic  myelitis,  which 
gradually  developed  in  intensity  until  it  extended  over  the 
entire  length  of  the  spinal  column,  in  consequence  of  which 
my  entire  body,  except  the  right  arm,  became  absolutely 
useless.  My  head  and  knees  were  drawn  so  closely  together 
that  the  only  way  I  could  take  food  was  by  having  my  knees 
forced  apart  and  being  fed  by  means  of  a  tube.  Every 
physician  who  was  employed  pronounced  my  case  incurable,, 
and  in  consultation  they  agreed  that  it  was  impossible  for 
me  to  live,  and  positively  would  never  be  well.  After  failing 
to  receive  any  help  or  get  any  encouragement  from  the  sev- 
eral physicians,  I  turned  to  Christian  Science,  and  through 
its  efficacy  was  completely  healed.  The  following  doctors 
were  employed:  Dr.  C.  O.  Bernhardt,  Sr.,  506  Eighteenth 
Street,  Rock  Island,  111.;  Dr.  George  Eyster,  1109  Second 

^  Congressional  Record,  loc.  cit.,  p.  1038. 
«76ld,  p.  1036  (case  17). 


The  Fact  of  Mental  Cures  113 

Avenue,  Rock  Island,  111.;  Dr.  J.  F.  Meyers,  2926  Fifth 
Avenue,  Moline,  111.;  Dr.  V.  A.  Berland,  17211/2  Second 
Avenue,  Rock  Island,  111. 

Respectfully  yours, 

(Miss)  Julia  C.  Meek, 
912  Seventeenth  Street,  Rock  Island,  111. 

The  narrative  of  this  young  lady  bears  on  its  face  the 
marks  of  sincerity  and  truth.  Yet  how  careful  one  must  be 
about  accepting  testimonies  may  be  illustrated  by  another  case 
reported  by  Senator  Works.  Christian  Science  makes  the 
claim  that  its  treatment  can  benefit  little  children  through  the 
thoughts  of  their  parents,  and  testimonials  to  this  effect  find  a 
conspicuous  place  in  every  collection  of  cures.  The  following 
represents  one  such  case: 

CASE  26^ 

Child  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  A.  K.  Wine — Crippled  and  Deformed 
from  Birth 

Washington,  D.  C. 
September  19,  1914. 

Our  youngest  daughter,  bom  July  15,  1912,  was  mis- 
shapen at  birth,  having  curvature  of  the  spine,  and  both  arms 
and  legs  constantly  remained  in  an  unnatural  position,  one 
arm  being  drawn  down  to  the  side  and  back  in  a  twisted 
position,  the  other  arm  being  drawn  up  back  of  the  head; 
both  legs  were  drawn  up  in  an  unnatural  position.  The 
child  had  convulsions  from  the  day  of  her  birth,  sometimes 
as  many  as  eighteen  in  a  day  and  night.  Every  particle  of 
food  she  attempted  to  eat  would  bring  on  convulsions.  She 
never  had  a  natural  movement  of  the  bowels.  We  tried  every 
means  that  we  could,  but  her  condition  never  improved. 

On  August  1,  1913,  we  took  her  to  Johns  Hopkins  Hos- 
pital, in  Baltimore.  The  surgeons  told  us  that  the  child 
had  been  injured  at  birth  and  had  a  clot  of  blood  on  the 
brain;  that  she  was  an  idiot  and  could  not  live;  that  if  it 
were  possible  for  her  to  live,  she  would  never  be  able  to  walk, 
because  her  legs  were  drawn  out  of  shape.  They  also  said 
that  one  shoulder  was  dislocated.  She  was  in  such  a  mis- 
shapen condition  that  this  had  never  been  discovered.     We 

^Congressional  Record,  Vol.  LII,  Part  I,  p.  1037. 


114?  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

brought  the  child  home,  and  the  end  seemed  to  be  at  hand. 
The  local  physician,  Dr.  William  P.  Wood,  said  that  she 
was  nearly  gone,  and  we  began  to  make  arrangements  for  the 
funeral.  She  revived,  however,  and  continued  to  live.  Some 
friends  then  called  our  attention  to  Christian  Science  and  ad- 
vised us  to  give  it  a  trial.  We  did  so,  and  as  soon  as  the 
treatment  in  Christian  Science  commenced,  the  convulsions 
stopped  and  the  bowels  began  to  act  normally,  and  have 
done  so  ever  since.  One  day  when  bathing  her  and  moving 
as  carefuly  as  possible  the  dislocated  arm,  it  suddenly 
snapped  into  place  with  considerable  noise.  It  has  remained 
in  place  ever  since.  She  is  now  able  to  stand  on  her  feet, 
her  legs  are  straight,  and  she  is  learning  to  walk  and  talk, 
and  is  not  an  idiot. 

Before  being  healed  in  Christian  Science  she  had  cut 
several  teeth.  They  were  all  without  enamel,  so  soft  and 
chalky  that  they  could  be  flaked  off  with  the  finger  nail. 
Since  her  healing  the  teeth  that  she  has  cut  have  been  cov- 
ered with  enamel,  and  enamel  is  forming  at  the  roots  of  the 
teeth  that  came  before  she  was  healed. 

The  surgeons  at  the  Johns  Hopkins  Hospital  stated, 
among  other  things,  that  a  rib  had  been  broken  and  grown 
together.  There  was  a  disagreeable-looking  lump  where  the 
break  had  occurred.  The  lump  has  entirely  disappeared. 
Her  back  is  also  perfectly  straight. 

Mrs.  Maude  A.  Wine, 
A.  K.  Wine, 
116  Third  Street,  N.  E. 

An  affidavit  is  added: 

This  is  to  certify  that  I  have  this  day  seen  the  daughter 
of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  A.  K.  Wine,  referred  to  in  the  accompany- 
ing statement.  The  appearance  of  the  child  bears  out  the 
statement  of  the  parents.  The  child  appears  bright,  active 
and  happy. 

William  S.  Campbell, 
The  Burlington. 

This  certainly  reads  like  a  most  remarkable  case  of  the 
power  of  mind  over  the  bodies  of  others.  To  make  assurance 
doubly  sure,  I  wrote  to  the  parents  of  the  baby  and  received 
the  following  reply: 


The  Fact  of  Mental  Cures  115 

My  Dear  Sir:  Your  letter  dated  October  25,  received 
and  the  questions  noted.  I  can  only  say  in  reply,  that  the 
statement  concerning  the  condition  of  our  baby  girl  as  found 
in  the  Congressional  Record,  Vol.  II,  Part  I,  p.  1Q37,  is  ab- 
solutely correct. 

The  case  was  thoroughly  investigated  and  proven,  before 
being  given  out  by  the  California  senator  on  the  floor  of 
the  senate.  Sincerely, 

Mrs.  A.  K.  Wine. 

Two  of  my  questions  remained  unanswered,  namely  (1) 
whether  this  child  was  still  living  at  the  time  of  my  inquiry,  and 
(2)  whether  I  might  be  permitted  to  see  her.  As  I  did  not 
receive  satisfaction  on  these  two  points,  I  continued  my  inves- 
tigations and  ascertained  that  the  child  must  have  died  shortly 
after  being  reported  cured.  She  had  never  been  known  to  be 
able  to  walk  or  to  talk  and  was  carefully  secreted  from  the 
view  of  the  neighbors.  This  shows  with  how  much  distrust  such 
testimonials  must  be  read.  Without  in  any  way  accusing  any- 
body of  bad  faith,  it  is  evident  how  easy  self-deception  is  in 
these  matters,  and  how  the  whole  truth  is  not,  as  a  rule,  printed 
in  testimonials  given  out  in  favor  of  a  particular  school  or  sect. 

In  all  the  cases  reported  by  the  Senator,  so  far  as  we  are 
able  to  judge,  the  cure  was  a  gradual  one.  There  is  perhaps 
one  exception,  the  case  of  Dr.  Burton,  an  alumnus  of  Rush 
Medical  School,  Chicago,  who  after  his  cure  gave  up  his  medi- 
cal practice  in  order  to  devote  himself  to  Christian  Science 
healing.    He  describes  his  physicial  condition  as  follows : 

"About  twelve  years  ago  I  was  advised  .  .  .  that  I  must 
go  to  Arizona,  if  I  would  take  my  one  chance  for  life,  as 
I  would  soon  die  with  consumption  otherwise.  .  .  .  When 
I  went  to  Arizona  I  tried  to  stop  the  drug,  but  found  that 
I  had  a  well-founded  opium  habit  and  that,  when  I  attempted 
to  break  it,  which  I  did  several  times,  the  lung  trouble  became 
too  serious  to  be  borne.  .  .  .  To  make  a  long  and  miserable 
story  as  short  as  possible,  these  three  things — alcohol,  mor- 
phine, and  cocaine^ — became  my  food  and  drink  .  .  .  until 
toward  the  end  I  was  taking  such  quantities  as  no  one  has 
ever  recovered  from,  so  far  as  I  know.  For  weeks  I  took  on 
an  average  of  more  than  one  hundred  grains  each  of  these 


116  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

two  drugs  hypodermically,  and  consumed  between  one  and 
two  quarts  of  whisky  daily.  I  became  entirely  demented  and 
a  menace  to  those  about  me." 

At  this  point  the  patient  was  near  his  end.  Five  of  his  fel- 
low-physicians told  his  wife  at  a  time,  when  he  had  been  uncon- 
scious for  forty-eight  hours,  that  he  could  not  live  more  than 
three  or  four  weeks,  and  that  this  time  must  be  spent  under 
the   strictest   restraint.      It  is   then   that   the   cure   occurred: 

"At  the  request  of  a  friend  whose  husband  had  been 
benefited  by  Christian  Science,  Mrs.  Burton  was  induced  to 
allow  a  Christian  Science  practitioner  to  call  to  see  me. 
Again  to  make  a  long  story  short,  he  came  and  spent  three 
hours  with  me.  I  have  no  memory  of  his  coming  or  of  his 
going,  but  he  left  me  asleep,  and  I  woke  on  the  following 
morning  free  from  all  of  these  habits,  normal  in  brain  and 
nerve,  hungry,  energetic,  clear-headed  and  happy.  I  knew 
the  moment  that  I  awoke  that  something  had  happened  to 
me,  and  that,  whatever  had  done  it,  I  was  free  from  the 
awful  things  that  had  bound  me.  But  I  did  not  know  what 
it  was  that  had  done  it  until  I  was  told." 

His  cure  was  a  complete  and  lasting  one. 

"That  was  nine  years  ago,  the  twentieth  of  April  of  this 
year.  From  that  moment  I  have  never  felt  the  slightest  ap- 
petite for  any  opiate,  cocaine  or  alcohol  in  any  form,  have 
never  felt  any  symptom  of  lung  trouble,  and  have  been  men- 
tally sound  and  clear.  Nor  was  there  a  moment  of  con- 
valescence. My  bowel  condition  was  normal.  My  nerves 
were  steady  and  quiet.  I  gained  30  pounds  in  weight  the 
subsequent  month,  and  within  ten  days  from  this  memorable 
morning  I  undertook  and  carried  to  a  successful  issue  the 
most  strenuous  piece  of  work,  from  both  mental  and  physical 
standpoints,  that  I  have  ever  done.  ..." 

This  cure  induced  the  doctor  to  give  up  his  medical  practice, 
and  devote  himself  entirely  to  the  cause  of  Christian  Science: 

"I  have  spent  over  nine  years  in  constant  study  of 
Christian  Science,  and  seven  years  in  its  practice.  I  was 
most  enthusiastic  in  the  practice  of  surgery,  and  was  a 
Pharisee  of  the  Pharisees  as  to  its  virtues.  I  gave  it  up 
only  after  being  most  thoroughly  convinced  that  there  was 


The  Fact  of  Mental  Cures  117 

something  better.  I  have  learned  to  my  entire  satisfaction, 
knowing  both  sides  of  the  question,  that  Christian  Science 
is  a  science,  and  not  only  that,  but  also  that  it  is  an  advance 
step — and  a  long  one — beyond  medicine  and  surgery,  and 
that  time  will  prove  this  to  the  whole  world.  I  have  seen 
many  cases  of  disease  healed  by  it  after  they  had  been  pro- 
nounced hopeless  and  dying  by  the  best  physicians.  I  have 
seen  disease  healed  through  it  in  a  few  minutes  where  it 
would  have  run  days  or  weeks,  according  to  medical  pro- 
gnosis. And  although  it  is  not  the  practice  of  Christian 
Science  practitioners  to  attempt  the  healing  of  broken  bones 
without  the  aid  of  surgery,  I  have  seen  dislocated  joint  and 
broken  bone  healed  within  a  few  days  without  the  use  of 
splint  or  bandage."  ^ 

Senator  Works  concluded  his  presentation  of  the  case  for 
Christian  Science  in  the  following  words : 

"Mr.  President:  To  summarize  the  cases  of  healing  I 
have  presented  to  the  Senate,  and  the  number  of  each  of  the 
mentioned  diseases,  they  include  fifty-seven  cases,  covering 
thirty-six  distinct  diseases,  and  the  number  of  each  kind 
shown  to  have  been  healed  are  almost  if  not  all  of  them — 
regarded  as  incurable  by  medicine  and  surgery,  and  diag- 
nosed as  such  by  competent  physicians.    They  are  as  follows : 

Tuberculosis 7  Insomnia 1 

Drink  Habit S  Diabetes    2 

Drug  Habit 2  Pemphigus 

Kidney   disease    6  Lead  Poisoning 

Cancer    10  Valvular  heart  disease  .... 

Tumor 7  Paralysis 

Double  curvature  of  spine.  2  Chronic  Myelitis    

Asthma    1  Gallstones 

Nervous  Prostration    1  Lung  trouble 

Neuralgia    1  Bright's  disease 

Organic  heart  disease   ....  1  Multiple  Neuritis 

Rheumatic  Gout 1  Tobacco  heart 

Ulceration  of  Stomach   ...  1  Rheumatism    .  ., 

Accidental  injuries    1  Blindness    

Locomotor  ataxia 3  Deafness 

Malformation  of  Children .  S  Necrosis  of  chest  bones  . . . 

Chronic  Constipation 2  Epilepsy   

Indigestion    1  Appendicitis 

^  Congressional  Record,  ibid.,  pp.  1028-1029. 


118  Christian  Science  cmd  the  Catholic  Faith 

"Many  good  people,"  he  continued,  "who  do  not  believe 
in  Christian  Science  concede  willingly  that  it  is  doing  great 
good  in  bringing  consolation  and  good  cheer  to  the  bereaved 
and  disconsolate,  allaying  fear  and  healing  functionary  or 
imaginary  diseases,  but  deny  its  power  to  heal  organic  dis- 
eases. For  these  they  still  believe  resort  to  the  medical 
practitioner  is  necessary.  In  the  cases  I  have  given,  not 
one  (?)  is  of  the  kind  to  which  it  is  thus  conceded  Christian 
Science  may  successfully  minister.  Of  such  as  these,  cases 
by  the  thousands  might  be  cited.  But  they  can  be  healed 
by  the  medical  doctor  with  his  drugs  or  his  bread  pills.  The 
great  work  of  Christian  Science,  as  I  have  shown,  is  in  the 
healing  of  organic  diseases  given  up  by  the  doctors  as  incur- 
able." 1 

Senator  Works  has  had  the  courage  of  his  conviction  and 
has  not  hesitated  to  give  fullest  expression  to  it,  though  his 
knowledge  of  the  distinction  between  functional  disease  and 
organic  disease  is  extremely  vague. 

Out  of  his  personal  experience  grew  the  belief  that  healing 
"is  as  much  a  religious  rite  as  redemption  from  sin." 

"I,  in  my  own  experience  and  by  later  observations,"  he 
says,  "have  been  convinced  that  drugs  and  other  material  al- 
leged remedies  do  not  heal,  and  that  there  is  a  remedy  that, 
if  rightly  applied,  will  heal  all  our  diseases.  I  have  been 
the  more  reluctant  to  enter  upon  this  discussion,  because 
it  necessarily  leads  in  an  indirect  way  into  a  discussion  of 
religion  because  of  the  conscientious  belief  on  my  part,  and 
of  thousands  of  others,  that  the  healing  of  disease  is  as 
much  a  religious  rite  as  redemption  from  sin,  and  that  the 
same  principle  that  regenerates  the  sinner,  applied  in  pre- 
cisely the  same  way,  heals  the  sick."  ^ 

II.       EXPERT  OPINIONS  ON  MENTAL  HEALING 

In  view  of  facts  like  those  here  presented  Professor  William 
James  all  too  enthusiastically  exclaims: 

"To  my  mind,  a  current  far  more  important  and  in- 
teresting than  that  which  sets  in  from  natural  science  to- 

*  Congressional  Record,  ibid.,  p.  1039. 
Ubid.,  p.  1022. 


The  Fact  of  Mental  Cures  119 

wards  healthy-mindedness  is  that  which  has  recently  poured 
over  America  and  seems  to  be  gathering  force  every  day  .  .  . 
and  to  which,  for  the  sake  of  having  a  brief  designation, 
I  will  give  the  title  of  the  Mind- cure  movement.  There  are 
various  sects  of  this  New  Thought — to  use  another  of  the 
names  by  which  it  calls  itself — but  their  agreements  are  so 
profound  that  their  differences  may  be  neglected  for  my 
present  purpose.  .  .  .  The  leaders  in  this  faith  have  had 
an  intuitive  belief  in  the  all-saving  power  of  healthy-minded 
attitudes  as  such,  in  the  conquering  efficacy  of  courage, 
hope  and  trust,  and  a  correlative  contempt  for  doubt,  fear, 
worry,  and  all  nervous  precautionary  states  of  mind.  Their 
belief  has  in  a  general  way  been  corroborated  by  the  prac- 
tical experience  of  their  disciples ;  and  this  experience  forms 
today  a  mass  imposing  in  amount.  The  blind  have  been 
made  to  see,  the  halt  to  walk;  lifelong  invalids  have  had 
their  health  restored.  The  moral  fruits  have  been  no  less 
remarkable.  .  .  .  These  general  tonic  effects  on  public 
opinion  would  be  good,  even  if  the  more  striking  results  were 
non-existent.  But  the  latter  abound,  so  that  we  can  afford 
to  overlook  the  innumerable  failures  and  self-deceptions 
that  are  mixed  in  with  them.  .  .  .  The  plain  fact  remains 
that  the  spread  of  the  movement  has  been  due  to  practical 
fruits ;  and  the  extremely  practical  turn  of  character  of 
the  American  people  has  never  been  better  shown  than  by 
the  fact  that  this,  their  only  decidedly  original  contribution 
to  the  systematic  philosophy  of  life,  should  be  so  intimately 
knit  up  with  concrete  therapeutics."  ^ 

To  oppose  the  claims  of  Christian  Science  by  producing  evi- 
dence that  it  has  signally  failed  in  many  cases,  or  by  asserting 
that  the  sicknesses  in  the  cases  mentioned  were  more  imaginary 
than  real,  or  that  the  cure  was  merely  temporary,  or  that  it 
should  be  attributed  to  causes  not  at  all  connected  with  Chris- 
tian Science  looks  very  much  like  refusing  to  see  what  one  does 
not  care  to  admit.  The  question  is  not  whether  Christian  Sci- 
ence succeeds  all  the  time,  but  whether  it  has  to  its  credit  a  cer- 
tain number  of  well-accredited  cures.  Competent  persons  that 
have  studied  the  subject  at  first  hand  grant  this  unhesitatingly. 

*  William   James:    The    Varieties   of  Religious   Experience    (New*  York, 
1910),  pp.  92-94. 


120  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"While  there  are  many,"  writes  Dr.  Eleanor  M.  Reed, 
"who  are  inclined  to  scofF  at  all  the  reported  cures  by 
Christian  Science,  and  to  ascribe  the  supposed  results  to 
imagination,  or  hypnotism,  or  mere  suggestion,  this  is  not 
true  of  those  who  have  honestly  investigated  available  evi- 
dence. Such  students  all  acknowledge  that  among  those 
with  whom  this  so-called  religion  has  become  a  matter  of 
genuine  personal  conviction,  there  are  occasionally  wonderful 
cures  of  real  organic  disease,  and  very  frequently  relief  from 
the  less  serious,  but  only  slightly  less  discomforting  difficulties 
known  as  functional  and  nervous  diseases."  ^ 

Of  the  greatest  weight,  on  this  subject,  especially  among 
us  Catholics,  must  be  the  opinion  of  Dr.  James  J.  Walsh,  as 
his  important  contributions  to  the  study  of  psychotherapy  place 
him  in  the  front  rank  among  contemporary  investigators  of 
mental  healing.  Under  date  of  February  8,  1909,  he  writes 
in  the  Catholic  Mind: 

"During  the  last  year  or  two  the  air  has  been  full  of 
discussion  of  psychotherapy.  The  reason  for  this  is  well 
known.  Christian  Scientists  have  found  that  by  denying  the 
existence  of  evil  and  of  disease  of  all  kinds  .  .  .  they  have 
succeeded  in  relieving  many  people  of  ills  with  which  they  have 
been  afflicted  often  for  long  years.  These  ills  have  almost 
as  a  rule  been  under  the  care  of  physicians  who  have  failed 
to  relieve  them.  The  consequence  has  been  a  calling  of  at- 
tention to  this  new  mode  of  viewing  disease.  Until  the  last 
couple  of  years  this  awakening  of  attention  was  confined  to 
Christian  Science  circles.  Christian  Science  was  found,  how- 
ever, to  be  making  such  serious  inroads  on  the  membership  of 
Protestant  churches,  that  the  question  not  unnaturally  oc- 
curred of  taking  up  some  of  the  Christian  Science  ideas  with 
regard  to  the  healing  of  disease  by  changing  the  mental  atti- 
tude of  people  toward  their  ailments,  in  order  to  prevent 
further  defections  from  Protestantism,  and  even  perhaps  to 
attract  people  who  had  not  been  seriously  interested  in  re- 
ligion up  to  that  time.    It  is  universally  conceded  that  this  is 

*Dr.  Reed,  in  Parv- Anglican  Congress  Report,  1908,  Vol.  Ill,  sect.  B; 
article:  "Christian  Science  and  the  Contrasting  Christian  Truth."  S.  B., 
pp.  8-17. 


The  fact  of  Mental  Cures  1^1 

the  origin  of  the  present  very  lively  interest  in  psychothera- 
peutics or  mental  healing."  ^ 

III.       EXTENT  OF  MENTAL  HEALING 

The  possibility  of  healing  real  diseases  by  merely  mental 
influence  being  granted,  it  remains  to  be  seen  to  what  extent 
these  mental  influences  can  be  eff^ective.  Is  mind  influence  cura- 
tive in  all  kinds,  or  even  in  all  cases  of  disease?  Does  it  cure 
chronic  and  malignant  sickness?  Is  it  effective  in  organic  dis- 
eases, or  must  it  be  limited  to  functional  disorders  ?  Sentiments 
differ  and  it  is  perhaps  as  yet  impossible  to  give  any  definite 
answer. 

It  is  well  known  that  men  of  science,  including  the  greater 
portion  of  the  medical  profession,  narrow  down  the  usefulness 
of  mental  influence  to  nervous  ailments,  and  deny  that  mind 
can  cure  organic  disease.     Dr.  Sadler  declares : 

"It  should  be  recalled  that  a  great  many  diseases  can  be 
wholly  produced  and  completely  cured  by  mental  influences 
alone.  Siich  diseases^  of  course,  are  -purely  functional.  Other 
chronic  and  organic  diseases,  as  such,  cannot  be  produced  by 
exclusive  mental  influences,  neither  can  they  be  fully  cured 
by  unaided  psychic  power."  ^ 

In  a  similar  strain  Dr.  Walsh  says: 

"Of  course  mental  influence  cannot  affect  organic  dis- 
ease. A  crumpled  heart  valve  can  no  more  be  helped  by  an 
idea  than  can  an  amputated  limb.  An  ulcerated  lung  can  no 
more  be  cured  in  this  way  than  can  an  ulcerated  eye."  ^ 

No  less  an  advocate  of  the  power  of  suggestion  than  Bem- 
heim  on  the  whole  supports  this  contention.  In  his  work  De  la 
Suggestion  et  de  ses  Applications  a  la  Therapeutique  he  denies 
that  psychotherapy  is  able  to  reconstruct  damaged  tissues  of 
the  human  organism,  and  declares  that  suggestion  "is  almost 
entirely  restricted  to  functional  diseases."  ^ 

*  Catholic  Mind,  February  8,  1909,  p.  31. 

=»  Sadler:  The  Psychology  of  Faith  and  Fear  (Chicago,  1912),  p.  301. 
'James  J.  Walsh  in  the  Catholic  Mind,  February  8,  1909,  article:  "Psycho- 
therapy," p.  44. 

*  II  est  vrai  que  la  suggestion  est  une  therapeutique  presque  exclusiYement 
fonctionnelle. 


122  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

The  authors  of  the  Emmanuel  movement  share  these  views: 

"We  believe,"  writes  Dr.  Worcester,  "in  the  power  of 
the  mind  over  the  body,  and  we  believe  also  in  medicine,  in 
good  habits,  and  in  a  wholesome,  well-regulated  life.  In  the 
treatment  of  functional  nervous  disorders  we  make  free  use  of 
moral  and  psychical  agencies,  but  we  do  not  believe  in  over- 
taxing these  valuable  aids  by  expecting  the  mind  to  attain 
results  which  can  be  effected  more  easily  through  physical 
instrumentalities.  .  .  .  For  this  reason  we  have  confined  our 
practice  to  that  large  group  of  maladies  which  are  known 
today  as  functional  nervous  disorders.  Although  a  sound 
psychical  and  moral  method  is  a  valuable  adjunct  in  every 
branch  of  medicine,  yet,  viewed  as  an  independent  remedial 
agent,  the  legitimate  sphere  of  psychotherapy  is  strictly 
limited.  It  is  in  the  field  of  the  functional  neuroses  that  all 
its  real  victories  have  been  won.  Here  again  our  conception 
of  our  mission  differs  from  that  of  our  predecessors.  In 
answer  to  their  taunt,  'If  you  believe  in  God's  power  to 
cure  disease,  how  dare  you  place  any  limit  to  that  power?' 
we  are  content  to  reply :  'We  believe  God  has  power  to  cure  all 
disease,  but  we  do  not  believe  God  cures  all  disease  by  the 
same  means.  At  all  events  an  authentic  instance  of  recover^/ 
from  organic  diseases  through  psychical  means  is  what  we 
are  waiting  for.  While  we  do  not  believe  that  any  man  knows 
all  that  is  to  be  known  on  this  subject,  or  that  we  are  in  a 
position  to  affirm  dogmatically  what  the  mind  can  or  cannot 
accomplish,  yet  we  are  surely  safe  in  accepting  as  to  this 
the  overwhelming  weight  of  scientific  opinion,  and  in  con- 
fining our  practice  to  a  field  in  which  it  is  known  to  be 
efficacious.' "  ^ 

Such  restrictions  are  not,  of  course,  acknowledged  by  per- 
sons of  the  stamp  of  Mrs.  Eddy. 

"The  author  never  knew  a  patient,"  she  declares,  "who 
did  not  recover  when  the  belief  of  the  disease  was  gone.  Re- 
move the  leading  error  and  governing  fear  of  this  lower  mind, 
and  you  remove  the  cause  of  any  disease,  as  well  as  the 
morbid  and  excited  action  of  any  organ.  You  also  remove 
in  this  way  mhat  are  termed  organic  diseases  as  readily  as 
functional  difficulties. "^  .  .   .  The  author  has  cured  what   is 

*  Worcester-McComb-Coriat:  Religion  and  Medicine  (New  York,  pp.  3-5). 
^Science  and  Health,  p.  377. 


The  Fad  of  Mental  Cures  123 

termed  organic  disease  as  readily  as  she  has  cured  purely 
functional  disease,  and  with  no  power  but  the  divine  Mind. 
.  .  .  Working  out  the  rules  of  Science  in  practice,  the  author 
has  restored  health  in  cases  of  both  acute  and  chronic  dis- 
ease, and  in  their  severest  forms.  Secretions  have  been 
changed,  the  structure  has  been  renewed,  shortened  limbs 
have  been  elongated,  cicatrized  joints  have  been  made  supple, 
and  carious  bones  have  been  restored  to  healthy  conditions. 
I  have  restored  what  is  called  the  lost  substance  of  lungs,  and 
healthy  organizations  have  been  established,  where  disease 
was  organic.  Christian  Science  heals  organic  disease  as 
surely  as  it  heals  what  is  called  functional;  for  it  only  re- 
quires a  fuller  understanding  of  its  divine  Principle,  to 
demonstrate  the  higher  rule."  ^ 

Although  modem  mind-healers  scoff  at  the  idea  of  limiting 
the  power  of  mind,  they  admit  certain  limits ;  but  these  are  de- 
termined not  by  our  bodily  constitution,  but  by  the  limitations 
of  our  mind.  Could  we  but  realize  the  true  gnosis,  the  full 
understanding  of  the  reality  of  our  spiritual  nature,  no  disease, 
they  claim,  could  resist  this  demonstration.  This  assertion, 
let  us  note,  is  not  based  on  experience,  but  is  a  bold  profession 
of  faith  in  the  supreme  reality  of  mind  and  in  its  universal  ap- 
plicability to  the  heahng  of  all  disease.  The  sweeping  claims 
of  Mrs.  Eddy  stand  only  as  long  as  there  is  question  of  con- 
sistent theorizing.  In  practice,  her  repeated  boasts  of  personal 
success  must  be  largely  discounted  on  the  ground  that  she  re- 
mained an  indifferent  healer,  who  could  not  prevent  her  husband, 
her  grandchild  and  her  favorite  niece  from  dying  relatively 
young.  Moreover,  at  the  end  of  the  Preface  of  every  edition  of 
Science  and  Health  she  inserts  the  following  note :  "The  author 
takes  no  patients,  and  declines  medical  consultation." 

Those  students  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  who  took  her  instructions 
too  literally,  got  themselves  occasionally  into  very  trying  cir- 
cumstances, not  a  few  deaths  resulting  from  sheer  lack  of  proper 
medical  attention.  Mrs.  Eddy,  of  course,  had  an  explanation 
for  failure  as  well  as  for  success.  When  she  did  not  blame  it 
on  the  lack  of  understanding  on  the  part  of  patient  or  prac- 

^  Science  and  Health,  pp.  149,  162. 


y 


1S4  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

titioner,  she  blamed  it  on  that  mysterious  non-entity,  called 
Malicious  Animal  Magnetism.  But  Mrs.  Eddy  was  not  content 
with  theory:  as  she  grew  older,  she  grew  wiser  and  when  dis- 
agreeable facts  could  no  longer  be  varnished  over  with  accom- 
modating theory,  she  flung  her  theories  to  the  winds  and  met 
fact  with  fact.  While  officially  maintaining  with  all  the  assur- 
ance of  revealed  truth  that  "Christian  Science  is  always  the 
most  skillful  surgeon,"  she  prudently  admonished  her  practi- 
tioners to  leave  "the  adjustment  of  broken  bones  and  disloca- 
tions to  the  fingers  of  a  surgeon"  and  to  confine  themselves 
"chiefly  to  mental  reconstruction  and  the  prevention  of  in- 
flammation." ^ 

In  a  statement  published  in  the  Christian  Science  Journal 
December,  1902,  she  advises  that  "until  public  thought  be- 
comes better  acquainted  with  Christian  Science,"  Christian 
Scientists  should  decline  "to  doctor  infectious  or  contagious 
diseases."  She  warns  them  earnestly  against  taking  "a  case  of 
malignant  disease,"  before  considering  well  their  ability  to 
cope  with  the  case,  reminding  them  "that  there  are  those  lying 
in  wait  to  catch  them  in  their  sayings"  and  "that  in  their  prac- 
tice, whether  successful  or  not,  they  are  not  specially  protected 
by  law."  ^  Queer  physicians  these  who  refuse  to  doctor  infec- 
tious diseases  and  think  twice  before  they  venture  to  help  a  case 
of  malignant  disease!  Truly,  truth  is  stranger  than  fiction! 
After  all  that  Mrs.  Eddy  has  written  about  the  omnipotence 
of  Mind  in  the  healing  of  disease,  and  against  the  dangers  of 
consulting  M.  D.'s  (doctors  of  medicine)  and  employing  medi- 
cine, she  coolly  veers  about  and  incorporates  into  her  Church 
Mamial  the  following  by-law : 

Art.  VIII,  sect.  23:  If  a  member  of  this  Church  has  a  pa- 
tient whom  he  does  not  heal  and  whose  case  he  cannot  fully 
diagnose,  he  may  consult  with  an  M.D.  on  the  anatomy  in- 
volved. And  it  shall  be  the  privilege  of  a  Christian  Scientist 
to  confer  with  an  M.D.  on  Ontology,  or  the  Science  of  being. 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  401.  Cf.  on  this  subject  Paget:  Faith  and  Works 
of  Christian  Science,  pp.  130-190.  Peabody:  The  Beligio-Medical  Masque- 
rade, pp.  103-120.     Milmine:  op.  cit.,  pp.  324-326,  354  ff. 

*Cf.  Snowden:  The  Truth  about  Christian  Science,  p.  237. 


The  Fact  of  Mental  Cures  125 

When  Mrs.  Eddy  inserted  this  concession  into  the  funda- 
mental laws  of  her  Church  organization,  she  must  have  entirely 
forgotten  her  former  "revealed"  statements  concerning  the 
dire  consequences  of  any  diagnosis  whatever.  As  Christ  never 
diagnosed,  so  a  Christian  Scientist  was  never  to  resort  to  such 
a  practice.  As  all  disease  was  unreal,  what  would  a  diagnosis 
profit?  "We  never  read,"  she  says,  "that  Luke  or  Paul  made 
a  diagnosis  of  a  disease,  in  order  to  discover  some  means  of 
healing  it.  Luke  never  asked  if  it  were  acute  or  chronic."  ^ 
And  still  more  plainly:  "The  moral  and  spiritual  facts  of 
health,  whispered  into  thought,  produce  very  direct  and  marked 
effects  on  the  body.  A  physical  diagnosis  of  disease — since 
mortal  mind  must  be  its  cause  if  it  exists — generally  has  a  ten- 
dency to  induce  disease."  ^ 

Thus,  through  the  whole  gamut  of  condemnations,  medical 
diagnosis  is  outlawed  and  execrated  as  unchristian  and  danger- 
ous, until  Mrs.  Eddy  herself  has  recourse  to  it,  and  recommends 
it  to  her  students.  In  like  manner  she  condemned  the  medical 
profession  again  and  again  in  arrogant  and  insulting  tones, 
until  theoretically  and  practically  she  falls  back  on  their  assist- 
ance. She  summons  them  to  the  bedside  of  her  dying  husband, 
and  grants  to  her  students  the  privilege  of  consulting  them.  By 
this  inconsistency,  on  her  own  avowal,  she  has  rendered  herself 
guilty  of  fostering  "a  tendency  to  induce  diseases."  It  is, 
therefore,  evident  that  her  sweeping  affirmations  are  but  a 
label  to  her  stock  in  trade  and  describe  its  contents  with  more 
zest  than  truth.  This  trade  brings  her  and  her  opponents  ap- 
preciably nearer  together. 

When  these  deny  the  possibility  of  mentally  healing  organic 
disease,  they  commonly  qualify  this  statement  and  render  it 
less  absolute.  Bernheim  limits  the  power  of  suggestion  "almost 
exclusively"  to  functional  disorders,  thus  allowing  a  certain 
influence  even  on  organic  disease.  Sadler,  after  stating  that 
such  diseases  as  can  "be  wholly  produced  and  completely  cured 
by  mental  influences  alone"  are,  of  course,  purely  functional, 
qualifies  this  by  adding: 

^Science  and  Health,  pp.  369-370. 
*Ibid.,   p.   370. 


1^6  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"We  are  forced  to  recognize  two  great  classes  of  physical 
disorders :  one,  in  which  the  mind  is  a  powerful  factor  in  both 
the  cause  and  the  cure;  the  other — the  organic  diseases — 
in  which  the  mind  exerts  hut  a  minimum  influence.  In  addi- 
tion to  these  two  great  classes  of  diseases  there  may  be  recog- 
nized a  third  class  of  ph3^sical  disorders  in  which  the  mind 
exerts  a  varying  and  uncertain  influence,  both  as  to  causation 
and  cure."  ^ 

In  like  manner  Dr.  Walsh  acknowledges  that 

"with  all  of  the  organic  diseases  there  comes  a  series  of  sym- 
toms  that  are  often  even  harder  to  bear  than  those  due  di- 
rectly to  the  disease  itself.  These  symptoms  are  the  results 
of  the  discouragement,  the  depression  and  the  lowered  state 
of  mental  activity  which  comes  with  incurable  disease.  This 
mental  depression  may  be  the  most  important  factor  in  caus- 
ing loss  of  appetite  and  various  digestive  disturbances.  It 
may  be  the  most  prominent  element  in  that  general  disturb- 
ance of  the  patient  which  makes  all  the  functions  of  the 
body  run  at  a  much  lower  capacity  than  they  ought  to,  and 
which,  consequently,  disturbs  general  vitality,  weakens  the 
patient  very  seriously,  and  leads  to  intercurrent  disease.  All 
of  these  symptoms  may  he  influenced  very  much  and  very 
favorably  hy  psychotherapy.^^  ^ 

These  explanations  seem  to  narrow  the  discussion  down  to 
one  of  terminology.  It  is  admitted,  on  the  one  hand,  that  or- 
ganic disease  can  be  indirectly  helped  by  psychotherapy:  mind 
treatment  can  clear  the  way,  remove  the  obstacles,  and  establish 
favorable  conditions  which  either  through  medicine  or  through 
nature  enable  the  cure  to  proceed  unchecked.  On  the  other 
hand,  it  is  also  demonstrably  certain  that  not  all  diseases,  not 
even  all  functional  diseases,  can  be  fully  cured  by  unaided 
psychic  power. 

"The  sharpness  of  this  distinction  between  organic  and 
functional  troubles,"  writes  Dr.  Cabot,  "is  somewhat  blurred 
by  the  fact  that  a  functional  or  nervous  affection,  such  as 
insomnia,  may  lead,  both  directly  and  through  loss  of  appe- 
tite, to  a  loss  of  weight  or  to  a  considerable  deterioration  in 

*  Sadler:  o'p.  cit.,  p.  302. 
■  Walsh:  op.  cit.,  pp.  44-45. 


The  Fact  of  Mental  Cures  IST 

the  body  tissues.  Here  we  have  what  might  be  called  organic 
disease  produced  by  functional  disease,  and  such  organic  dis- 
ease as  this  is  often  cured  by  Christian  Science  or  by  some 
more  rational  method  of  mental  healing."  ^ 

Christian  Science,  consequently,  is  not  what  Mrs.  Eddy 
calls  it,  a  panacea  for  "all  the  ills  human  flesh  is  heir  to,"  and 
the  testimonials,  printed  in  the  textbook,  the  Journal,  and  else- 
where, are  at  best  a  thoroughly  one-sided  presentation  of  the 
evidence. 

"The  vast  majority  of  these  testimonials,"  writes  Dr. 
Paget,  "are  not  worth  the  paper  on  which  they  are  printed. 
What  are  kidney  trouble,  lung  trouble,  heart  trouble,  liver 
trouble,  eye  trouble?  They  are  not  chronic  nephritis, 
phthisis,  valvular  disease,  cirrhosis  and  cataract.  Bowel 
trouble  is  ordinary  constipation ;  stomach  trouble  is  ordinary 
indigestion  and  aversion  from  food;  spinal  trouble  is  ordi- 
nary backache.  These  are  not  testimonies,  but  testimonials ; 
every  advertisement  of  a  new  quack  medicine  publishes  the 
like  of  them.  We  all  know  Mr.  A  and  Mrs.  B  and  Miss  C 
who  bear  witness  to  So-and-So's  Pills.  They  had  spinal 
trouble  and  kidney  trouble.  There  is  a  rough  sketch  of  them 
doubled  up  with  pain  or  weeping  at  the  family  tea  table.  And 
it  is  certain  that  the  pills  did  them  good.  .  .  .  Again,  many 
of  these  witnesses  are  not  telling  the  truth  .  .  .  not  wilfully, 
but  from  sheer  inability  to  be  accurate.  Again,  we  all  know 
that  no  statement  is  more  inaccurate  than  the  average  state- 
ment of  what  the  doctor  said.  .  .  .  Again,  what  is  the  good 
of  proclaiming  that  Christian  Science  heals  diseases  which 
get  well  of  themselves.     Time  heals  them."  ^ 

Hence,  Mrs.  Eddy's  discovery  comes  to  this:  she  obtained 
from  P.  P.  Quimby  her  fundamental  principles  which,  as  long 
as  there  was  no  opposition,  she  stretched  to  extremes  and  em- 
bellished with  various  adventitious  doctrines.  Then  she  posed 
before  the  world  as  God's  chosen  instrument  to  usher  in  the 
new  era  of  universal  health  and  general  prosperity.  When 
defending  her  system,  she  is  boundless  in  her  pretension  of 
curative  powers,  but  when  dealing  with  hard  fact  and  fearing 

*  Cabot:  op.  cit.,  p.  473.  ^ 

» Paget:    op.  cit.,  pp.  131-133. 


128  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

the  arm  of  the  Law,  which  does  not  allow  unwarranted  theories 
to  endanger  the  lives  of  the  people,  she  compromises  with  theory 
and  covers  her  tracks  as  best  she  can,  on  the  whole,  talking 
and  acting  surprisingly  much  like  the  rest  of  the  world  who  be- 
lieve in  real  matter  and  real  disease.  The  theory  was  made  to 
attract  believers;  the  practice  was  modified  to  escape  its  dan- 
gerous consequences. 

As   early   as    1884   Dr.    Townsend    of    Boston   University 
printed  the  following  challenge  to  Mrs.  Eddy: 

"If  you,  or  the  president  of  your  College,  or  your  entire 
college  of  doctors,  will  put  into  place  a  real  case  of  rip  or 
ankle  dislocation  without  resorting  to  the  ordinary  manipu- 
lation, or  without  touching  it,  I  will  give  you  $1000.  Or  if 
you,  or  your  president,  or  your  entire  College,  will  give  sight 
to  one  of  the  inmates  of  South  Boston  Asylum  for  the  Blind, 
that  sightless  person  having  been  born  blind,  I  will  give  you 
$2000." 

To   this   challenge  Mrs.   Eddy   replied  in   the  Journal  of 
Christian  Science  under  date  of  February  7,  1885: 

"The  article  of  Prof.  Townsend  .  .  .  published  in  Zion*s 
Herald,  December  3,  came  to  my  notice  not  until  January  9. 
In  it  he  offered  the  President  of  the  Metaphysical  College  in 
Boston,  or  one  of  her  students,  the  liberal  sum  of  $1000,  if 
she  would  reset  certain  dislocations  without  the  use  of  her 
hands,  and  $2000,  if  she  would  give  sight  to  one  born  blind. 
Will  the  gentleman  accept  my  thanks  due  to  his  generosity ; 
for,  if  I  should  accept  his  bid,  he  would  lose  his  money.  Why .'' 
Because  I  performed  more  difficult  tasks  fifteen  years  ago. 
At  present  /  am  in  another  department  of  Christian  work, 
where  ^ there  shall  he  no  sign  given  them,'  for  they  shall  be  in- 
structed in  the  Principle  of  Christian  Science  that  furnishes 
its  own  proof."  ^ 

'Tis  a  pity  Mrs.  Eddy  did  not  see  fit,  either  personally  or 

through  one  of  her  students,  to  take  up  the  challenge  of  Dr. 

Townsend,  at  least  as  an  act  of  pure  charity,  and  as  a  means 

of  making  converts  innumerable,  seeing  it  was  such  an  easy 

task  for  her! 

*  Townsend:   Faith-Work,   Christian  Science   and   Other  Cures    (Boston, 
1885),  pp.  56-57. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


METHODS  OF  MENTAL  HEALING 


Mental-healing  methods  are  continually  forming.  They 
vary  with  every  individual,  almost  with  every  cure.  Yet, 
through  them  all  runs  an  unmistakable  family  likeness  marking 
them  all  with  the  Quimby  impress  of  thought.  The  Quimby 
system  soon  outgrew  its  original  simplicity;  like  the  doctrine 
of  evolution  it  branched  out  into  various  systems  which  all 
tend  to  become  complete  philosophies  of  life.  No  longer  con- 
fined to  the  treatment  of  disease,  they  promise  to  establish  in 
man's  life  perfect  harmony,  contentment  and  happiness.  Their 
treatment  against  disease  maintains  its  place  of  honor;  but 
other  treatments,  like  the  so-called  prosperity  treatment,  line 
up  beside  it.  New  Thought,  in  particular,  lays  great  stress 
on  the  larger  aspects  of  its  teaching  and  on  the  experiential 
value  of  the  facts  of  life. 

As  this  broadens  out  the  underlying  principles,  so  it  also 
modifies  the  current  methods  of  treatment.  On  the  whole,  their 
practice  is  considerably  more  conservative  than  their  theory. 
In  theory  they  may  hold  with  Mrs.  Eddy  that  food,  climate 
and  hygiene  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  health  of  man,  even 
that  any  attention  paid  to  hygiene  and  to  climatic  conditions  is 
full  of  dreadful  dangers ;  in  practice,  they  will  be  quite  as  sen- 
sitive as  the  rest  of  us  to  the  changes  in  temperature,  quite 
as  particular  about  bodily  comfort,  quite  as  fully  alive  to  the 
daily  need  of  food.  We  are  still  waiting  for  the  Christian 
Science  hunger-striker  who  would  be  willing  to  demonstrate  the 
truth  of  his  religion  by  renouncing  that  scandalously  material 
process  known  as  eating.  Mrs.  Eddy  herself  took  care  to 
guard  against  any  such  extension  of  her  teaching.  "It  would 
be  foolish,"  she  writes,  "to  venture  beyond  our  present  under- 
standing, foolish  to  stop  eating  until  we  gain  perfection  Bnd  a 

m 


130  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

clear  comprehension  of  the  living  Spirit.  In  that  perfect  day 
of  understanding  we  shall  neither  eat  to  live  nor  live  to  eat."  ^ 

Mrs.  Eddy  was  less  reserved  with  regard  to  hygiene.  "The 
less  we  know  or  think  about  hygiene,"  she  declares,  "the  less 
we  are  predisposed  to  sickness."  ^  Physical  comfort  received  no 
consideration  from  her  in  theory.  In  practice,  however,  it  is 
;  well  known,  that  the  luxury  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  home  became  a 

j  scandal  to  her  followers.^    When  she  fled  from  that  imaginary 

demon  Animal  Magnetism  to  Barre,  Vermont,  she  stayed  there 
only  a  short  while,  because  the  town  band  would  not,  as  re- 
quested, stop  playing  on  the  square  in  front  of  her  house.* 
Later  on,  when  at  Concord,  she  had  her  piazza  enclosed  with 
heavy  sailcloth,  to  protect  herself  against  the  unreality  of  the 
chilly  autumn  air.^  Thus  the  lives  of  the  founder  and  of  the 
whole  school  of  Christian  Scientists  daily  belie  in  a  thousand 
different  ways  their  solemn  profession  of  immateriality,  a  clear 
proof  that  whatever  truth  Christian  Science  possesses  is  like  a 
tiny  grain  of  gold  buried  under  an  immense  heap  of  rubbish. 

But  this  is  the  negative  side  of  mental  healing.  On  its 
positive  side,  it  is  almost  true  to  say  that  there  are  nearly  as 
many  methods  as  teachers  and  practitioners.  These  methods, 
however,  can  easily  be  reduced  to  a  few  well-defined  types. 
Thomson  Jay  Hudson  classifies  them  as  follows: 

"1.  Prayer  and  Religious  Faith,  as  exemplified  in  the 
cures  performed  at  Lourdes  and  at  other  holy  shrines.  To 
this  class  also  belong  the  cures  effected  by  prayer  alone,  the 
system  being  properly  known  in  this  country  as  the  faith- 
cure  and  the  'prayer-cwre.^ 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  388. 
'  Ibid.,  p.  389. 

•Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  342.    "In  the  Christmas  holidays  of  1887  Mrs.  Eddy 

moved  from  her  dwelling  in  Columbus  Avenue  to  a  more  pretentious  house 

at  385  Commonwealth  Avenue.    The  fact  that  some  of  the  members  of  Mrs. 

Eddy's  own  Boston  Church  began  to  murmur  texts  about  the  foxes  having 

holes  and  the  birds  of  the  air  having  nests  .    .    .  augured  ill  for  the  year 

that  was  just  beginning." 

w  *Ibid.,  p.  387.     "Mrs.  Eddy  suddenly  left  Boston,  driven  from  home,  so 

^  she  declared,  by  malicious  Mesmerism." 

^Ibid.,  p.  411. 

'  For  the  sake  of  completeness  this  passage  is  quoted  in  full.    We  do  not| 

imply  by  this  that  we  ascribe  to  prayer  and  to  shrines  no  other  than  merely] 

-«  mental  efficacy. 


Methods  of  Mental  Healing  131 

"2.  The  Mmd-Ciire, — 'A  profound  method  of  healing 
which  rests  upon  the  suppositions  that  all  diseased  states  of 
the  body  are  due  to  abnormal  conditions  of  the  mind,  and 
that  the  latter  (and  thus  the  former)  can  be  cured  by  the 
direct  action  of  the  mind  of  the  healer  upon  the  mind  of 
the  patient.'  ^ 

"3.  Christian*  Science. — This  method  of  healing  rests 
upon  the  assumption  of  the  unreality  of  matter.  This  as- 
sumed as  a  major  premise,  it  follows  that  our  bodies  are  un- 
real, and,  consequently,  there  is  no  such  thing  as  disease,  the 
latter  existing  only  in  the  mind,  which  is  the  only  real  thing 
in  existence. 

"4.  Spiritism,  which  is  a  system  of  healing  based  on  the 
supposed  interposition  of  spirits  of  the  dead,  operating  di- 
rectly, or  indirectly  through  a  medium,  upon  the  patient. 

"5.  MesTnerism, — This  includes  all  the  systems  of  heal- 
ing founded  on  the  supposition  that  there  exists  in  man 
a  fluid  which  can  be  projected  upon  another,  at  the  will  of 
the  operator,  with  the  effect  of  healing  disease  by  the  thera- 
peutic action  of  the  fluid  upon  the  diseased  organism. 

"6.  Suggestive  hypnotism. — This  method  of  healing  rests 
upon  the  law  that  persons  in  the  hypnotic  condition  are  con- 
stantly controllable  by  the  power  of  suggestion,  and  that  by 
this  means  pain  is  suppressed,  function  modified,  fever 
calmed,  secretion  and  excretion  encouraged,  etc.,  and  thus 
nature,  the  healer,  is  permitted  to  do  the  work  of  restora- 
tion." 2 

Leaving  aside  for  the  present  the  cures  of  Lourdes  and 
other  Catholic  shrines,  and  waiving  also  the  question  in  how 
far  these  six  groups  of  healing  systems  are  identical  and  in 
how  far  they  differ,  we  shall  turn  our  attention  to  the  methods 
employed  by  Christian  Science  and  New  Thought.  Both  these 
aim  directly  at  curing  the  soul,  confident  that  a  healthy  soul 
necessarily  means  a  healthy  body.  Whether  in  the  abstract 
they  admit  the  reality  of  the  body  or  not,  is  immaterial,  since 
they  agree  that  disease  must  be  reached  from  within,  not  from 
without.  Sin  and  sickness,  being  exterior  manifestations  of 
some  lurking  interior  shortcoming,  must  vanish  as  soon  as  this 

^Definition  quoted  from  the  Century  Dictionary. 

"Hudson:  The  Law  of  Psychic  Phenomena  (Chicago,  1893),  p.  150. 


13^  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

interior  defect  is  cured.  Such  is  their  basis  for  this  work  of 
reformation.  This  apparently  so  grand  conception  of  life,  on 
its  positive  side,  sins  by  attributing  excessive  powers  to  the 
soul;  and,  on  its  negative  side,  by  denying  altogether,  or  at 
least  greatly,  underrating,  the  physical  basis  of  life. 

Their  methods  are  largely,  though  not  exclusively,  based  on 
this  false  principle.  To  begin  with  Mrs.  Eddy,  we  find  her 
whole  system  built  on  the  demand  of  perfect  faith  on  the  part 
of  both  practitioner  and  patient.  Many  of  her  counsels  need 
not  be  despised :  they  are  such  as  might  be  given  by  any  one  to 
a  prospective  nurse.  For  Mrs.  Eddy  was  above  all  practical: 
whenever  she  comes  down  to  hard  fact,  her  theories  recede  into 
the  background,  and  commonsense  takes  their  place.  Theory 
is  not  forgotten,  but  hedged  in  to  such  an  extent  by  other  regu- 
lations that  it  becomes  effective  largely  through  these.  Her 
instructions,  wisely  enough,  begin  with  the  mental  and  moral 
preparation  of  the  prospective  healer.  Two  qualities,  moral 
rectitude  and  gentleness,  she  strongly  inculcates. 

"The  metaphysician  -^  should  first  cast  moral  evils  out  of 
himself,  that  he  may  thus  attain  the  spiritual  freedom,  which 
will  enable  him  to  cast  physical  evils  out  of  his  patients.  .  .  . 
An  ill-tempered  and  complaining  person  should  not  be  a 
nurse.  The  nurse  should  be  full  of  cheerfulness,  faith,  light, 
— a  believer  in  God,  Truth,  Life  and  Love.  .  .  .  The  tender 
word  and  Christian  encouragement  of  an  invalid,  pitiful  pa- 
tience with  his  fears,  and  the  removal  thereof  are  better 
than  hecatombs  of  gushing  theories,  stereotyped  borrowed 
speeches,  and  the  doling  of  arguments  which  are  but  so  many 
parodies  on  legitimate  Christian  Science  aflame  with  divine 
Love."  1 

Beautiful  words  these,  which,  if  Mrs.  Eddy  had  heeded,  her 
book  Science  and  Health  would  either  never  have  been  written, 
or  would  be  very  diff^erent  from  what  it  is. 

From  these  subjective  dispositions,  essential  in  a  healer, 
Mrs.  Eddy  passes  on  to  those  which  must  be  called  forth  in  the 
mind  of  the  patient,  and  insists  in  a  very  special  manner  on  two 

^Science  and  Health,  pp.  366  and  395.     A  metaphysician  in  Mrs.  Eddy's 
terminology  is  a  Christian  Science  practitioner  or  healer. 


Methods  of  Mental  Healing  15^ 

things:  strong  faith  and  complete  dismissal  of  the  thought  of 

illness. 

"One  should  never,"  so  she  teaches,  "hold  in  mind  the 
image  of  disease,  but  efface  all  its  forms  and  types  in  thought 
both  for  one's  own  sake,  and  for  the  patient's.  Avoid  talking 
illness  to  the  patient.  Make  no  unnecessary  inquiries  rela- 
tive to  feelings  or  disease.  Never  startle  with  a  discouraging 
remark  about  recovery,  nor  draw  attention  to  certain  symp- 
toms as  unfavorable,  nor  speak  aloud  the  name  of  the  disease. 
Never  say  beforehand  how  much  you  have  to  contend  with 
in  a  case  nor  encourage  in  the  patient's  thought  the  expecta- 
tion of  growing  worse  before  the  crisis  is  passed."  -^ 

The  reason  for  these  rules  of  conduct  is  obvious.  Every 
physician  knows  that  lack  of  courage  aggravates  disease.  Per- 
sons of  a  nervous,  quick,  imaginative,  and  impressionable  na- 
ture, obsessed  with  the  fear  of  death,  are  placed  at  a  disadvan- 
tage and  frequently  are  unequal  to  the  task  of  fighting  the 
germs  of  ill-health.  Any  suggestion  as  to  the  gravity  of  the 
situation  lowers  to  that  extent  his  chances  of  recovery.  What 
is  peculiar  to  Mrs.  Eddy's  teaching  on  this  subject  is  not  the 
good  advice  given,  but  the  mold  in  which  it  is  cast.  Even  the 
image  of  disease  in  the  minds  of  those  who  attend  the  sick  is 
considered  dangerous,  irrespective  of  the  fact  whether  it  finds 
utterance  in  speech  or  not.  But  to  utter  the  name  of  the  disease 
aloud,  for  some  unexplained  reason,  might  prove  disastrous. 
The  same  remarks  must  be  made  on  the  counsels  of  calmness  and 
discretion  which  Mrs.  Eddy  gives. 

"The  sick  are  terrified  by  their  sick  beliefs,"  she  says 
emphatically,  "and  sinners  should  be  affrighted  by  their 
sinful  beliefs ;  but  the  Christian  Scientist  will  be  calm  in  the 
presence  of  both  sin  and  disease,  knowing  as  he  does  that  God 
is  Love  and  God  is  All.^  ...  If  they  ask  about  their  disease, 
tell  them  only  what  is  best  for  them  to  know,  Assure  them 
that  they  think  too  much  about  their  ailments  and  have 
already  heard  too  much  about  that  subject.  Turn  their 
thoughts  away  from  their  bodies  to  higher  objects.  Teach 
them  that  their  bodies  are  sustained  by  spirit,  not  by  matter, 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  396.  , 

*Ihid.,  p.  366. 


134  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

and  they  will  find  rest  in  God,  divine  Love,  more  than  in 
oblivious  sleep."  -^ 

In  addition  to  these  helps  to  a  speedy  recovery,  Mrs.  Eddy, 
true  to  her  principles  in  this  case,  recommends  also  a  thorough 
spiritual  house-cleaning. 

"Include  moral  as  well  as  physical  belief  in  your  efforts 
to  destroy  error.  Cast  out  all  manner  of  evil.  ...  A  moral 
question  may  hinder  the  recovery  of  the  sick.  Lurking  error, 
envy,  revenge,  malice  or  hate  will  perpetuate,  or  even  create 
disease.  Errors  of  all  sorts  tend  in  this  direction.  Your 
true  course  is  to  destroy  the  foe  and  leave  the  field  to  God, 
Life,  Truth  and  Love,  remembering  that  God  and  His  ideas 
are  real  and  lasting."  ^ 

If  Mrs.  Eddy  does  not  go  so  far  as  to  recommend  the  sacra- 
ment of  Penance  as  suitable  to  her  purposes,  others  have  not 
hesitated  to  point  out  the  supposed  physical  advantages  of  this 
Catholic  practice.     Says  Mr.  Evans: 

"We  ought  to  ascertain,  so  far  as  practicable,  the  pre- 
cise nature  of  the  disordered  mental  state,  or  fixed  mode  of 
thought,  that  is  the  spiritual  root  of  the  patient's  malady, 
and  which  has  crystallized,  through  the  law  of  correspond- 
ence, into  an  organic  expression  in  the  body.  This  should 
be  attacked  by  the  psycho-therapeutic  force  from  every 
point  of  approach.  The  patient  should  himself  freely  aid 
in  the  spiritual  diagnosis  of  his  case.  The  Roman  Catholic 
Church  maintavns  the  Divine  order,  when  it  makes  confession 
a  necessary  antecedent  of  absolution,  or  a  being  released. 
The  sin — the  error,  the  falsity,  as  the  word  means — should 
be  remitted  or  sent  away."  ^ 

These  are  very  general  considerations,  too  general  and 
sweeping  to  be  of  much  practical  value.  Yet  they  do  form  the 
gist  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  instructions.  She  must  stay  in  generali- 
ties and  allow  others  to  work  out  the  details.  It  makes  it  easier 
for  her  to  defend  herself  in  case  of  failures,  and  failures  in 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  416. 
^Ibid.,  p.  418. 

'Evans:  The  Divine  Law  of  Cure  (Boston,  1881),  p.  281.    We  may  note 
the  similarity  of  these  views  with  those  of  the  Psychoanalysts. 


Methods  of  Mental  Healing  135 

the  shape  of  death  or  relapse  were  bound  to  come.     For  such 
emergencies  her  prescription  was  as  follows : 

"If  your  patient  from  any  cause  suffers  a  relapse,  meet 
the  cause  mentally  and  courageously,  knowing  that  there 
can  be  no  reaction  in  Truth.  Neither  disease  itself,  sin,  nor 
fear  has  the  power  to  cause  disease  or  relapse.  ...  A  re- 
lapse cannot  in  reality  occur  in  mortal  minds,  for  there  is 
but  one  Mind.  .  .  .  If  it  is  found  necessary  to  treat  against 
relapse,  know  that  disease  or  its  symptoms  cannot  change 
forms,  nor  go  from  one  part  to  another,  for  Truth  destroys 
it.  .  .  .  Instruct  the  sick  that  they  are  not  helpless  victims ; 
for,  if  they  will  only  accept  truth,  they  can  resist  disease  and 
ward  it  off,  just  as  positively  as  they  can  the  temptation  to 
sin.  This  fact  of  Christian  Science  should  be  explained  to 
invalids  when  they  are  in  a  fit  mood  to  receive  it, — when  they 
will  not  array  themselves  against  it,  but  are  ready  to  become 
receptive  of  the  new  idea.  .  .  .  If  it  becomes  necessary  to 
startle  mortal  mind,  in  order  to  break  its  dream  of  suffering, 
vehemently  tell  your  patient  that  he  must  awake.  Turn 
his  gaze  from  the  false  evidence  of  the  senses  to  the  harmoni- 
ous facts  of  Soul  and  immortal  being.  Tell  him  that  he 
suffers  only  as  the  insane  suffer,  from  a  mere  belief.  The 
only  difference  is  that  insanity  implies  belief  in  a  diseased 
brain,  while  physical  ailments  (so-called)  arise  from  belief 
that  some  other  portions  of  the  body  are  deranged."  ^ 

These  methods,  taught  and  employed  by  Mrs.  Eddy,  were 
more  fully  developed  by  her  students,  especially  by  those  among 
them  who,  in  point  of  Church  affiliation,  followed  an  independ- 
ent course.  All  aimed  at  instilling  in  the  hearts  of  the  sick  that 
spirit  of  faith,  trust  and  confidence  which,  in  the  words  of  Wil- 
liam James,  creates  a  state  of  healthy-mindedness.  Where  a 
hypnotic  doctor  would  be  satisfied  to  suggest,  under  hypnosis, 
states  of  health,  or  remedies  for  disease  without  ever  aiming  at 
the  reconstruction,  on  an  entirely  new  basis,  of  his  patient's 
mental  life,  the  modem  mind-healer,  true  to  his  philosophy, 
would  aim  mainly  at  inspiring  an  entirely  changed  outlook  on 
life.  Even  Dr.  Quimby,  though  his  method  was  simplicity  it- 
self, had  this  larger  aim. 

« 
^Science  and  Health,  pp.  419-420. 


136  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"Instead  of  putting  the  patient  into  a  mesmeric  sleep," 
writes  his  son,  Mr.  George  Quimby,  "Mr.  Quimbj  would  sit 
by  him,  and  after  giving  a  detailed  account  of  what  his 
troubles  were,  he  would  simply  converse  with  him,  and  explain 
the  causes  of  his  troubles,  and  thus  change  the  mind  of  the 
patient  and  disabuse  it  of  its  error  and  establish  the  truth 
in  its  place,  which,  if  done,  was  the  cure."  ^ 

Since  then  methods  have  multiplied.  To  bring  some  sort 
of  order  into  them,  we  may  form  them  into  groups  and  treat 
successively  of  what  may  be  termed  the  tactual  or  sympathetic 
method,  the  visual  method,  the  silent  and  telepathic  methods 
and  the  verbal  method. 

Tabooed  by  Christian  Scientists  and  tolerated  by  Quimby, 
the  tactual  method  finds  itself  defended  by  others  of  the  mind- 
healers.    It  is  thus  explained  by  Mr.  Evans : 

"There  is  a  tendency  in  the  minds  of  two  persons  who 
are  in  tactual  contact  towards  a  oneness  of  thought  and 
feeling.  This  takes  place  through  a  universal  principle  of 
human  nature  denominated  psychometry  but  which  I  prefer 
to  call  the  sympathetic  sen^e.  .  .  .  When  the  hand  is  placed 
on  the  head  of  a  patient,  at  the  point  of  impact,  your  mind 
comes  into  contact,  as  it  were,  with  his  mind:  for  sensation 
is  not  in  the  external  organ,  but  in  the  spiritual  organism. 
If  he  is  receptive  or,  in  any  degree,  impressible,  your  thoughts 
and  healthy  emotional  states  can  be  transmitted  to  him  or, 
more  properly,  excited  in  him,  as  they  do  not  pass  out  of 
your  mind  in  coming  into  his.  An  impulse  towards  a  healthy 
action  can  in  this  way  be  imparted  to  any  organ  of  his  body. 
This  has  been  established  by  experiment.  Here  is  the  philoso- 
phy of  the  method  of  cure  by  the  imposition  of  hands,  which, 
as  the  primitive,  instinctive  means  of  cure,  is  again  restored 
to  the  healing  art.  It  was  practiced  by  Jesus,  the  Christ, 
and  his  disciples,  or  scholars,  which  ought  to  be  enough  to 
give  it  currency  among  those  who  assume  his  name  and  pro- 
fess to  copy  his  life."  ^ 

The  visual  method,  according  to  the  same  author,  also  has 
Scriptural  support.     It  was  employed  by  St.  Peter  and  St. 

*  Quoted  in  Dresser's  History  of  the  New  Thought  Movement,  p.  39. 
2  Evans:   op.   cit.,  p.   273. 


Methods  of  Mental  Healing  13T 

John  in  the  cure  of  the  lame  man  at  the  gate  of  the  temple  when, 
fastening  their  eyes  upon  him,  they  said  "look  on  us''  and  bade 
him  rise  and  walk.^  This  method  need  not  detain  us  as  it  is 
not  in  common  use  except  perhaps  as  an  auxiliary  that  may  add 
to  the  effectiveness  of  other  ways  of  healing. 

The  silent  method  enjoys  at  present  a  considerable  vogue. 
It  consists  either  in  silent  meditation,  or  in  silent  but  direct 
intercourse  with  the  patient's  mind,  without  the  aid  of  external 
bodily  organs,  according  as  it  is  employed  in  one's  own  behalf, 
or  in  behalf  of  some  one  else.  Mrs.  Melinda  E.  Cramer  thus 
elucidates  silent  meditation:  "Going  into  the  silence,"  she  ex- 
plains, "does  not  fully  express  what  is  meant  to  be  conveyed  by 
the  statement ;  it  simply  means  being  still  mentally  for  the  pur- 
pose of  realizing  the  truth  of  the  power  and  possibility  of 
Being."  2 

Silent  healing  is  described  by  Evans  as  follows : 

"When  a  patient  is  in  a  passive  and,  consequently,  impres- 
sive and  receptive  mood,  and  with  his  eyes  closed,  so  as  to 
shut  out  from  his  mind  all  sensational  images  of  external 
things,  our  thoughts  may  be  imparted  to  him,  or,  at  least,  we 
can  change  the  character  and  direction  of  his  thinking. 
This  can  be  done  either  when  in  actual  tactual  contact  with 
him  or  at  a  distance.  In  addition  to  a  state  of  passivity,  he 
should  be  in  a  state  of  sympathy  with  his  physician.  These 
conditions  being  fulfilled,  his  mind  becomes  a  tabvla  rasa  or 
clean  slate  on  which  our  thoughts  may  be  written,  and  even 
without  the  intervention  of  spoken  words.  What  we  imagine 
and  believe  and  think,  will  be  transferred  to  him;  for  the 
stronger  and  more  active  mind  wiU  control  the  other. 
Thought  is  an  interior  speech  or  inward  word.  It  is  the 
proper  language  of  souls,  the  universal  language  of  spirit. 
.  .  .  It  is  the  idea,  the  thought,  that  imparts  to  a  word  a 
sanative  virtue."  ^ 
As  an  example  of  this  method  I  select  from  Dr.  Dresser's 
Handbook  the  following  excerpt : 

^  Evans:  of.  cit.,  p.  277. 

*  Cramer:  Divine  Science  and  Healing  (2d  ed.,  San  Francisco,  1907),  p. 
129. 

"Evans:  op.  cit., -p.  279.  The  Psychoanalysts  likewise  insist*  on  such 
a  state  of  sympathy  between  physician  and  patient. 


138  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"The  healer,  sitting  in  silence  by  the  patient,  would  put 
his  mind  through  a  process  somewhat  as  follows,  addressing 
his  thought  to  the  patient's  inmost  self :  'Peace  be  with  you. 
I  come  as  a  messenger  of  peace  to  bring  freedom  and  hap- 
piness. Let  us  realize  the  peace  and  goodness  of  God.  You 
are  God's  child,  perfect  in  ideal,  strong,  well  and  free.  In 
God  there  is  perfect  peace  and  harmony,  no  discord  at  all. 
Let  your  fears  and  doubts  go  that  you  may  know  His  peace 
and  love.  There  is  nothing  to  fear.  Now  your  fears  are 
going;  you  are  becoming  restful,  trustful  and  free.  You  are 
settling  down,  down  into  quietness  and  repose:  the  disturb- 
ance is  subsiding,  the  tension  is  lessening.  Now  God's  perfect 
ideal  is  being  realized.  You  are  at  peace ;  you  are  well ;  you 
are  healed.'  "  ^ 

When  this  silent  treatment  is  undertaken  from  a  distance 
by  means  of  telepathic  thought-transference,  it  is  called  distant 
treatment.  This  distant  treatment,  believed  in  by  practically 
all  modem  mind-healers,  becomes  the  source  of  many  super- 
stitious fears;  for,  if  the  human  mind  can  influence  the  minds 
and  bodies  of  others  at  will,  regardless  of  distances,  there  is  ab- 
solutely no  reason  why  it  could  not  exert  an  influence  for  evil  as 
well  as  for  good.  Of  this  conviction  was  born  Mrs.  Eddy's  life- 
long dread  of  malicious  animal  magnetism.  This  faith  or,  rather, 
blind  belief  in  the  possibilities  of  absent  treatment,  is  an  un- 
founded assumption.  It  is  assumed  to  be  true,  just  as  the  exclus- 
ive reality  and  sole  existence  of  God  is  assumed  to  be  true.  Yet 
mind-healers  will  believe  in  it  with  a  conviction  worthy  of  a 
better  cause.  Distant  treatment  has  been  developed  into  a 
regular  trade,  witness  the  accompanying  reproduction  of  an 
advertisement  printed  in  Unity,  the  monthly  issued  by  Unity 
School  of  Christianity,  Kansas  City,  Missouri : 

Society  of  Silent  Unity 

Be  still  and  know  that  I  am  God 
INSPIRED  BY  THE  SPIRIT  OF  TRUTH 

Silent  Unity  represents  the  Healing  Department  of  the 
Unity  School,  and  it  ministers  unto  those  needing  help,  with- 
*  Dreisser:  Handbook,  p.  61. 


Methods  of  Mental  Healing  139 

out  seeing  them  personally.  Jesus  Christ  spoke  the  Word 
and  healed  the  centurion's  servant  and  others. 

We  are  glad  to  help  all  who  have  faith  in  the  Power  of 
God,  no  matter  what  the  need  may  be,  whether  physical, 
financial,  mental  or  spiritual.  If  everything  else  has  failed 
we  will  take  your  case.     "With  God  all  things  are  possible." 

Silent  Unity  will  pray  for  you  and  instruct  you  how  to 
pray  to  the  Father  in  secret,  and  the  Father  who  sees  in 
secret  will  reward  you  openly. 

The  expenses  of  the  Silent  Unity  work  are  met  entirely 
by  the  free  will  offerings  of  those  to  whom  we  minister.  "Give, 
and  it  shall  be  given  unto  you,  good  measure,  pressed  down, 
shaken  together,  running  over." 

All  letters  are  strictly  confidential.^ 

UNITY  SCHOOL  OF  CHRISTIANITY 

SILENT  UNITY  DEPARTMENT 

We  come  now  to  the  verbal  method.  It  needs  no  explana- 
tion as  to  the  form  it  takes,  and  can  best  be  illustrated  by  pay- 
ing attention  to  its  contents.  It  goes  without  saying  that  this 
subject  covers  a  wide  range  of  ideas.  Yet  the  one  common  aim 
is  constant  and  is  well  characterized  by  the  title  chosen  by 
Mr.  Horace  Fletcher  for  one  of  his  books  on  mental  science, 
namely  Happiness  as  Found  in  Forethought  Mmus  Fear- 
thought?  No  less  constant  is  the  one  common  way  that  leads 
to  this  coveted  goal,  described  by  Dr.  Sadler  as  the  Masterkey 
to  Mental  Healing,  namely  faith,  meaning  thereby  psychologi- 
cal faith  which  comprises  optimism,  contentment,  self-confi- 
dence, certainty,  trust  and  other  cheerful  dispositions.^ 

All  mental  healing,  consequently,  consists  in  denying  audibly 
or  otherwise  the  existence,  and,  thereby,  destroying  the  dispo- 
sition, of  fear,  and  in  affirming  motives  of  trust,  self-confidence, 
self-exaltation.  The  following  treatment  is  taken  from  Fill- 
more's well-known  book  entitled  The  Science  of  Being  and  Chris- 
tian Healing  in  which  through  six  successive  stages  correspond- 
ing to  the  six  days  of  Creation  he  professes  to  lead  men  out  of 

^  Unity  (Magazine),  November,  1920,  p.  451. 
'Chicago,  1897. 
'  Loc.  cit.,  p.  106% 


140  Christian  Science  amd  the  Catholic  Faith 

the  land  of   sendtude  and   error  into   perfect  harmony  with 
Truth.     These  six  stages  are : 

"1.  The  mind  perceives  and  affirms  truth  to  be  a  universal 
Principle. 

"2.  Faith  in  the  working  power  of  Truth  is  born  to  con- 
sciousness. 

"3.  Truth  takes  definite  form  in  mind. 

"4.  The  Will  carries  Truth  into  acts. 

"5.  Discrimination  is  quickened  and  the  difference  between 
Truth  and  error  discerned. 

"6.  Every  thought  and  word  is  expressed  in  harmony  with 
Truth." 

The  following  invocation  is  to  precede  each  day's  treatment : 

"I  acknowledge  thy  presence  and  power,  O  blessed  Spirit, 
and  in  thy  Divine  wisdom  now  erase  my  mortal  limitations, 
and  from  thy  pure  substance  of  Love  bring  into  manifesta- 
tion my  world  according  to  thy  perfect  law." 

The  following  treatment  for  Tuesday  is  submitted  as  a 
sample  of  the  whole  process  of  reasoning  to  which  the  mind  is 
subjected.  Its  positive  and  negative  aspects  are  indicated  by 
the  words  deny  and  affirm, 

"Deny — I  deny  the  belief  that  I  have  inherited  disease, 
sickness,  ignorance  or  any  other  mental  limitations  whatso- 
ever. I  deny  all  belief  in  evil ;  for  God  made  all  that  really 
is  and  pronounced  it  good.  Therefore,  no  such  deception  as 
a  belief  in  evil  can  darken  my  clear  understanding  of  Truth. 
Those  with  whom  I  associate  can  no  longer  deceive  me  with 
their  words  of  consideration  and  sympathy.  I  can  no  longer 
deceive  myself  with  such  weakness. 

"Perish  from  my  world  these  silly  beliefs  of  darkened 
ignorance.  I  am  now  free  from  them  all,  and  by  my  powerful 
word  hereby  destroy  them  wholly. 

"Affirm — God's  Life  is  my  life  and  I  vibrate  with  harmony 
and  wholeness.  I  am  free  with  the  knowledge  that  all  is 
good ;  I  am,  therefore,  perfectly  whole  and  well." 

Thus  the  author  leads  his  client  through  a  different  exercise 
every  day  until  by  the  end  of  the  week  he  is  ready  to  declare 


Methods  of  Mental  Healing  141 

and  believe  that  he  is  unlimited  in  power.    Here  are  a  few  short 
extracts  of  Saturday's  treatment : 

"Deny — .  .  .  I  now  in  the  sight  and  presence  of  Al- 
mighty God  unformulate  and  destroy  hy  my  all-powerful 
word  every  foolish  and  ignorant  assumption  that  may  impede 
my  march  to  perfection.  My  word  is  the  measure  of  my 
power.    I  have  spoken  and  it  shall  be  so. 

"Affirm — .  .  .  I  am  unlimited  in  my  power  and  have 
increasing  health,  strength,  life,  love,  wisdom,  boldness,  free- 
dom, charity  and  meekness  now  and  forever.  ...  I  am  one 
with,  and  now  fully  manifest.  Infinite  goodness  and  mercy. 
Peace  floweth  like  a  river  through  my  mind,  and  /  thank  thee, 
0  God,  that  I  am  one  with  thee,'' 

Sunday's  enigmatical  treatment  covers  just  part  of  a  line 
and  reads :     "Be  still  and  know  that  I  am  God."  ^ 

These  citations  show  better  than  any  words  of  ours  could 
do  the  peculiar  mentality  of  the  modem  mind-healer.  Its  pan- 
theistical strain  is  obvious  to  even  a  casual  observer.  The 
Christian  mind  cannot  be  fitted  into  it.  The  necessity  of  a  re- 
translation  of  our  popular  hymns  into  this  New  Tongue  is  a 
consequence ;  the  sentiments  of  our  saints  and  doctors  are  grossly 
erroneous  in  the  light  of  these  new  discoveries.  For  instance, 
that  well  known  children's  rhyme  which  begins  with  the  words 
Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep,  receives  the  following  version  in 
the  textbook  of  the  Colorado  College  of  Divine  Science. 

Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep 
/  know  that  God  his  child  does  keep 
/  know  that  God,  my  life,  is  nigh : 
I  live  in  him,  /  cannot  die. 

God  is  my  Health;  I  can't  be  sick 
God  is  my  strength,  unfailing,  quick; 
God  is  my  All,  /  know  no  fear 
Since  Life,  and  Love,  and  Truth  are  here. 

"If  you  will  learn  these  lines,"  the  author  adds,  "and  re- 
peat them  every  night,  you  will  find  help  in  them."  ^ 

^Fillmore:  Christian  Healing,  pp.  261-266.  Italics  are  mine  to  bring  out 
more  clearly  the  author's  characteristic  views.  The  same  applies  else- 
where, unless  otherwise  noted. 

'James,  Fannie  B.;  Truth  and  Health  (3d  ed.,  Denver,  1905),  p'  51. 


142  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

An  objection  also  is  considered.  "Suppose,"  says  the  ob- 
jector, "a  child  is  sick.  How  can  she  say  'God  is  my  help,  I 
can't  be  sick  ?^  "  The  author  replies :  "Let  her  say  it  then  ten 
times  instead  of  once.  She  is  sick  because  she  has  forgotten  that 
God  is  her  health.  Claiming  God  as  her  health  will  remind  her 
of  the  Truth  and  drive  away  the  false  belief.  This  is  the 
prayer  of  faith  that  heals  the  sick."  ^ 

We  have  seen  enough  of  these  methods  to  understand  their 
general  drift  and  specific  character.  They  are  not  mere  make- 
shifts, to  be  administered  when  needed,  and  relegated  to  oblivion 
when  not  wanted ;  they  are  rules  of  life,  and  as  rules  of  life  they 
appeal  to  many.  This  spiritualized  life  must  be  lived  daily ;  at 
stated  hours  a  loyal  menticulturist  is  expected  to  take  his  men- 
tal medicine,  if  this  expression  be  allowed.  How  deeply  this 
affects  their  whole  life,  permeates  their  mentality,  and  influences 
their  actions,  is  manifested  in  their  cheerful  dispositions  and 
frequently  enough  in  their  improved  health.  These  results  are 
not  affected  by  the  fanciful  character  of  their  religious  and 
philosophical  principles.  In  the  case  of  some  of  them  at  least, 
the  theoretical  denial  of  the  individuality  of  the  soul  leaves 
them,  theoretically,  no  mind  to  cultivate,  and  the  denial  of  the 
existence  of  the  material  world  leaves  them,  theoretically  again, 
no  body  to  cure.  Thus,  always  theoretically  speaking,  their 
systems  are  self-destructive,  and  their  practices  meaningless. 

Their  unguarded  actions,  however,  are  a  refutation  of  their 
philosophical  beliefs  and  a  vindication  of  our  common  sense 
philosophy.  For  us,  in  truth,  as  for  all  unsophisticated  men, 
the  reality  of  the  material  world  is  beyond  dispute.  It  is  the 
touchstone  of  all  our  concepts  and  ideas.  No  reasoning  that 
begins  with  denying  the  reality  of  our  senses,  or  the  objectivity 
of  their  data,  can  meet  with  our  approval.  Nor  can  the  fol- 
lowers of  the  modem  mind  movements  point  to  results  as  the 
proof  of  the  truth  of  their  philosophical  tenets;  they  would 
first  have  to  show  that  no  other  explanation  for  their  alleged 
cures  is  valid.  But  we  are  convinced  that  another  explanation 
does  exist,  and  to  prove  that,  we  now  turn  to  a  consideration 
of  the  interrelations  of  mind  and  body. 
^  James:  o^.  cit.,  p.  51. 


CHAPTER  IX 


MIND   AND    BODY 


A  THOROUGH  study  of  the  interrelations  of  mind  and  body, 
though  of  great  interest  to  the  modern  mind,  cannot  be  under- 
taken in  this  connection.  We  propose,  however,  briefly  to  re- 
view the  traditional  Catholic  teaching  on  this  subject.  For  it 
is  our  firm  conviction  that  it  alone,  among  all  the  various 
psychological  systems,  takes  squarely  into  account  the  full 
bearing  of  all  the  phenomena  of  life.  Confronted  with  the 
problem  of  matter  and  spirit,  the  philosophers  of  the  golden  age 
of  Scholasticism — unlike  our  modern  idealists, — did  not  cut  the 
Gordian  knot  by  denying  the  reality  of  matter,  or  by  making  it 
a  purely  mental  state.  Such  extreme  views  may  please  certain 
minds  that  love  to  live  in  paradoxes,  but  will  find  no  favor  with 
the  common  people,  to  whom  of  all  realities  matter  is  the  most 
obvious. 

With  the  best  minds  of  classical  antiquity,  the  Schoolmen 
opposed  a  materialistic  conception  of  the  world  with  as  much 
determination  as  the  most  pronounced  idealist;  but,  at  the 
same  time,  they  no  less  carefully  avoided  ultra-idealism.  Mat- 
ter for  them  was  real,  and  so  was  mind.  But  reality  did  not 
mean  identity.  Thinking  matter  or  material  mind  were  both 
inconceivable,  an  evident  contradiction  in  terms.  But  the  real- 
ity of  both  mind  and  matter  were  primary  facts,  not  dependent 
on  any  speculation,  but  plain  postulates  of  reason  which  no  man 
in  his  right  senses  could  venture  to  question. 

The  reader  will  probably  be  surprised  to  learn  how  the 
Scholastics  reconciled  their  teaching  concerning  a  material 
body  and  a  spiritual  soul  by  maintaining  the  closest  possible 
union  of  mind  and  body.  Body  and  soul,  in  their  view,  are  sub- 
stances essentially  different  from  each  other,  but  so  closely 
united  that  the  concept  of  a  living  body  includes  that  of  the 

143 


144<  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

soul.  In  spite  of  its  essentially  spiritual  nature,  the  soul  is  not 
contrasted  with  the  body  as  with  something  hostile  or  foreign. 
When  spiritual  writers  depict  in  glowing  colors  the  uninter- 
rupted struggle  between  man's  material  and  spiritual  parts, 
and,  with  St.  Paul,  declare  that  there  is  a  law  in  their  members 
fighting  the  law  of  the  mind  and  captivating  them  in  the  law 
of  sin,  they  do  not  run  counter  to  the  scholastic  teaching,  which, 
far  from  denying  this  struggle,  explains  it  on  the  very  ground  of 
the  intimate  union  of  the  material  and  the  spiritual  elements 
in  man. 

1.  For  them  the  soul  is  the  "forma  substantialis"  of  the 
body,  its  energizing  power,  even  its  architect  and  organizer, 
so  that  the  body  is  actuated  and  becomes  a  human  body  only 
through  the  energizing  and  organizing  action  of  the  soul.  This 
action  never  ceases ;  it,  so  to  say,  perpetually  creates  the  body 
which  it  permeates,  communicating  to  it  whatever  faculties  the 
latter  possesses.  The  soul  is  the  force  that  organizes  the  material 
out  of  which  the  body  is  constructed ;  that  indwells  and  vivifies 
these  material  elements,  and  works  in,  with,  and  through  them. 
The  intellectual  soul  is,  therefore,  the  source,  not  only  of  its  in- 
tellectual activities,  but  even  of  what  we  conceive  to  be  specifically 
bodily  functions,  like  nutrition,  sense-perception,  and  locomo- 
tion.    In  the  words  of  St.  Thomas : 

"We  must  assert  that  the  intellect,  which  is  the  principle 
of  intellectual  operation,  is  the  form  of  the  human  body.  For 
that  whereby  primarily  anything  acts,  is  the  form  of  the 
being  to  which  the  act  is  to  be  attributed.  .  .  .  Now  it  is 
clear  that  the  first  thing  by  which  the  body  lives,  is  the  soul. 
.  .  .  For  the  soul  is  the  primary  principle  of  our  nourish- 
ment, feeling  and  local  movement,  and  likewise  the  primary 
principle  whereby  we  understand."  '^ 

2.  In  man  there  is  none  but  an  intellectual  soul,  no  in- 
ferior, no  merely  bodily  form  that  would  give  the  body  an  inde- 

*St.  Thomas:  Summa  Theologica,  Pars  I,  q.  76,  art.  1.  "Necesse  est  dicere 
quod  intellectus  qui  est  intellectualis  operationis  principium  sit  humani 
corporis  forma.  Illud  enim  quo  primum  aliquid  operatur  est  forma  ejus 
cui  operatio  attribuitur.  .  .  .  Manifestum  est  autem  quod  primum  quo 
corpus  vivit,  est  anima.  .  .  .  Anima  est  primum  quo  nutrimur  et  sentimus 
et  movemur  secundum  locum,  et  similiter  quo  primo  intelligimus." 


Mind  and  Bodi/  145 

pendent  existence.  This  is  true  to  such  an  extent  that  an  in- 
tense absorption,  let  us  say  in  some  intellectual  pursuit,  largely 
inhibits  the  exercise  of  other  faculties,  as  for  instance,  hearing 
and  seeing.  A  man,  intensely  interested  in  the  reading  of  a 
book,  will  fail  to  observe  what  is  going  on  around  him.  In 
such  cases,  the  whole  consciously  controllable  energy  of  the 
soul  is  riveted  on  the  one  object  and  everything  else  becomes 
blurred.     In  the  words  of  St.  Thomas : 

"We  do  not  say  that  there  are  two  souls  in  one  man  .  .  . 
one,  animal,  by  which  the  body  is  animated  and  which  is  com- 
mingled with  the  blood;  the  other,  spiritual  which  obeys  the 
reason;  but  we  say  that  it  is  one  and  the  same  soul  in  man, 
that  both  gives  life  to  the  body  by  being  united  to  it,  and 
orders  itself  by  its  own  rule."  ^ 

3.  By  holding  this  view,  the  Scholastics  took  issue  with 
the  Platonists,  who,  confirmed  idealists  that  they  were,  could 
not  admit  that  man's  spiritual  soul  would  stoop  so  low  as  to 
perform  the  very  lowest  bodily  functions. 

"Plato  held  that  there  were  several  souls  in  one  body, 
distinct  even  as  to  organs,  to  which  souls  he  referred  the 
different  vital  actions,  saying  that  the  nutritive  power  is  in 
the  liver,  the  concupiscible  in  the  heart,  and  the  power  of 
knowledge  in  the  brain.  .  .  .  This  is  proved  impossible  by  the 
fact  that  when  one  operation  of  the  soul  is  intense,  it  im- 
pedes another,  which  could  never  be  the  case,  unless  the 
principle  of  action  were  one.  .    .    . 

"We  must  therefore  conclude  that  in  man  the  sensitive 
soul,  the  intellectual  soul,  and  the  nutritive  soul  are  nu- 
merically one  soul.  .  .  .  Thus  the  intellectual  soul  contains 
virtually  whatever  belongs  to  the  sensitive  souls  of  brute 
animals,  and  the  nutritive  souls  of  plants."  ^ 

^Summa  Theologica,  Pars  I,  q.  76,  art.  3.  "Neque  duas  animas  esse 
dicimus  in  homine  uno,  unam  animalem  qua  animetur  corpus  et  immixta 
sit  sanguini,  et  alteram  spiritualem  quae  rationem  ministret;  sed  dicimus 
unam  et  eandem  esse  animam  in  homine  quae  et  corpus  sua  societate 
vivificat  et  semetipsam  sua  ratione  disponit." 

^  Ibid.,  Pars  I,  q.  76,  art.  3:  "Plato  posuit  diversas  animas  esse  in 
corpore  uno,  etiam  secundum  organa  distincta  quibus  diversa  opera 
vitae  attribuebat  dicens,  vim  nutritivam  esse  in  hepate,  concupiscibilem  in 
corde,  cognoscitivam  in  cerebro.  .  .  .  Apparet  hoc  esse  impossibile  per  hoc 
quod  una  operatio  animae,  cum  fuerit  intensa,  impedit  aliam,  quod  nuUo 


146  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Here  we  have  a  principle  of  the  highest  importance  for  our 
present  purpose.  It  will  go  far  towards  explaining  all  the 
cures  we  have  enumerated  in  a  previous  chapter.  For  the  same 
soul  is  intellective,  sensitive,  and  nutritive  all  at  once;  it  con- 
ceives through  the  intellect,  perceives  through  the  senses,  and 
builds  up  the  body  it  inhabits  by  means  of  nutrition,  and 
yet  it  is  essentially  one  and  indivisible.  From  this  it  naturally 
follows  that  the  closest  possible  union,  the  most  intimate  rela- 
tions, exist  between  the  rational  soul  and  the  material  body. 
No  accidental  bond  unites  soul  and  body ;  the  soul  itself  is  the 
bond,  the  only  link ;  it  is  the  proprietor  of  the  body  in  as  much 
as  the  life  of  the  body  is  its  own,  communicated  to  the  body, 
but  not  lost  to  itself.  Not  only  does  it  give  life,  but  it  gives 
an  animal  existence  as  well,  to  that  organized  body  with  which 
it  finds  itself  united. 

4t.  The  soul  is,  consequently,  the  only  controlling  and 
manufacturing  power  in  the  human  compound. 

"Whence,^'  says  St.  Thomas,  "we  must  conclude  that 
there  is  no  other  substantial  form  in  man  besides  the  in- 
tellectual soul;  and  that  the  soul,  as  it  virtually  contains 
the  sensitive  and  the  nutritive  souls,  so  does  it  virtually  con- 
tain all  inferior  forms  (or  powers),  and  itself  alone  does 
whatever  the  forms  do  in  other  things.  .  .  .  Therefore,  while 
remaining  one  and  the  same,  it  perfects  matter  according 
to  the  various  degrees  of  perfection.  For  the  same  essen- 
tial form  makes  man  an  actual  being,  a  body,  a  living  being, 
an  animal  and  a  man."  ^ 

5.  A  consequence  of  this  is  that  the  soul  finds  itself  in  its 
entirety  in  the  whole  body  and  in  every  one  of  its  parts.  Yet, 
since  some  of  its  faculties  entirely  transcend  the  body,  they  do 
not  reside  in  the  body,  but  in  the  soul;  others,  on  the  contrary, 

modo  contingeret,  nisi  principium  actionum  esset  per  essentiam  unum. 
Sic  ergo  dicendum  quod  eadem  numero  est  anima  in  homine  sensitiva  et 
intellectiva  et  nutritiva.  .  .  .  Sic  igitur,  anima  intellectiva  continet  in  sua 
virtute  quidquid  habet  anima  sensitiva  brutorum,  nutritiva  plantarum." 

^  Summa  Theologica,  Pars  I,  q.  76,  art.  4:  "Unde  dicendum  est  quod 
nulla  alia  forma  substantialis  est  in  homine  nisi  sola  anima  intellectiva,  et 
quod  ipsa,  sicut  virtute  continet  unimam  sensitivam,  ita  virtute  continet 
omnes  inferiores  formas,  et  facit  ipsa  sola  quidquid  imperfectiores  formae 
in  aliis  faciunt." 


J 


Mmd  cmd  Body  147 

can  only  be  exercised  through  those  parts  of  the  body  which  are 
fitted  for  that  purpose,  hence  they  are  properly  said  to  reside 
in  the  body. 

"Of  the  powers  of  the  soul,"  says  St.  Thomas,  **some 
reside  in  it,  in  so  far  as  it  transcends  the  whole  capacity  of 
the  body,  namely  the  intellect  and  the  will ;  hence  such  powers 
are  said  to  reside  in  no  part  of  the  body.  But  others  are 
common  to  soul  and  body.  Hence  it  is  not  to  be  said  of  any 
of  these  powers  that  it  finds  itself  wherever  the  soul  is,  but 
only  that  it  finds  itself  in  that  part  of  the  body  which  is 
fitted  out  for  the  operation  of  such  a  power."  ^ 

This  theory  of  the  Scholastics  avoids  the  shoals  both  of 
materialism  and  of  false  idealism.  It  explains  intelligibly  both 
the  spiritual  side  of  man  and  those  relations  between  the  psychic 
and  the  physical  which  remain  unexplained  in  other  systems.  It 
helps  to  understand  many  phenomena  which  more  one-sided 
philosopliies  gloss  over,  and  which  remain  standing  objections 
to  their  theories.  Let  us,  then,  pass  on  to  inquire  into  the 
consequences  flowing  from  this  substantial  union  of  body  and 
soul. 

II 

The  soul  being  the  active  principle  in  man,  transcending 
the  body  by  means  of  some  of  its  faculties,  but  residing  in  it 
and  depending  on  it  by  means  of  others,  it  virtually  contains 
in  itself  two  essentially  distinct,  but  by  no  means  independent, 
groups  of  powers.  The  higher  of  these  may  be  comprehen- 
sively called  mmd,  or  in  more  abstract  terminology,  the  psychic; 
the  lower  one  may  be  designated  under  the  term  the  physical. 
The  higher  group  includes  intellection  and  volition;  the  lower 
one,  sensation  and  nutrition.  Somewhere  between  these  two 
groups,  under  the  direct  influence  of  both,  the  scholastic  phil- 
osopher would  place  the  phantasia  or  iTnagmativa,  fancy  or 

*  Summa  Theologica,  Pars  I,  q.  76,  art.  8 :  "Potentiarum  aniraae  quaedam 
sunt  in  ea  secundum  quod  excedit  totam  corporis  capacitatem,  scilicet  intel- 
lectus  et  voluntas;  unde  huiusmodi  potentiae  in  nulla  parte  corporis  esse 
dicuntur.  Aliae  vero  potentiae  sunt  communes  animae  et  corpori.  Unde 
talium  potentiarum  non  oportet  quod  quaelibet  sit,  in  quocumque  est,  sed 
in  ilia  parte  corporis,  quae  est  proportionata  ad  talis  potentiae'  oper- 
ationem." 


148  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

imagination.  Without  imagination  it  is  impossible  for  the 
intellect  to  think,  as  it  is  impossible  for  the  imagination  to  be 
active  without  a  previous  or  subsequent  sensation.  The  former 
truth  is  asserted  by  St.  Thomas  in  the  following  passage : 

"It  is  impossible  for  our  intellect,  in  the  state  of  our 
present  life  in  which  it  finds  itself  joined  to  an  impressionable 
body  (passibili  corpori),  to  understand  a  thing  as  really 
existent,  except  by  turning  to  the  mental  images  {phantas- 
Tnata).  .  .  ,  The  reason  for  this  is  that  the  faculty  of 
knowledge  is  proportioned  to  the  thing  to  be  known.  .  .  . 
Now  the  proper  object  of  the  human  intellect  is  the  essence 
(quidditas)  or  nature  existing  in  a  body.  But  it  belongs 
to  the  very  concept  of  this  nature  that  it  should  exist  in  an 
individual  .  .  .  hence  the  nature  of  a  stone  or  of  any  ma- 
terial object  cannot  be  fully  or  truly  known,  except  in  so  far 
as  it  is  known  to  exist  in  a  particular  thing ;  but  the  particu- 
lar we  apprehend  through  sense  and  imagination.  Hence, 
it  is  necessary  that  the  intellect,  in  order  to  know  its  proper 
object,  should  turn  to  the  mental  images."  ^ 

Of  greater  importance  for  us,  at  present,  is  the  truth  that 
^  imagination  is  built  on  sensation  and  always  accompanied  by 

sensation. 

"The  body  is  naturally  changed  by  the  imagination  of  the 
soul,"  says  St.  Thomas,  "and  so  much  more  changed,  the 
stronger  the  soul's  imagination.  ...  If  the  imagination  be 
strong,  the  body  obeys  naturally  in  some  things  .  .  .  for 
instance,  as  regards  alteration  in  heat  and  cold  and  their 
consequences.  For  the  passions  of  the  soul  whereby  the 
heart  is  moved,  naturally  follow  the  imagination,  and  thus, 
by  commotion  of  the  spirits  the  whole  body  is  altered.  .  .  . 
but  other  corporeal  dispositions,  which  have  no  natural  rela- 
tion to  the  imagination  are  not  transmuted  by  the  imagina- 

^  Svmma  TJieologica,  Pars  I,  q.  84,  art.  7:  "Impossibile  est  intellectiim 
nostrum,  secundum  praesentis  vitae  statum  quo  passibili  corpori  coniungitur, 
aliquid  intelligere  in  actu,  nisi  convertendo  se  ad  phantasmata.  .  .  .  Huius 
autem  ratio  est  quia  potentia  cognoscitiva  proportionatur  cognoscibili.  .  .  . 
Intellectus  autem  humani  qui  est  coniunctus  corpori  proprium  objectum  est 
quidditas  sive  natura  in  materia  corporali  existens.  .  .  .  De  ratione  autem 
huius  naturae  est  quod  in  aliquo  individuo  existat  .  .  .  unde  natura  lapidis 
vel  cuiuscumque  materialis  rei  cognosci  non  potest  complete  et  vere  nisi 
secundum  quod  cognoscitur  ut  in  particulari  existens;  particulare  autem 
apprehendimus  per  sensum  et  imaginationem." 


Mind  and  Body  149 

tion,  however  strong  it  is   .    .    .   for  instance,  the  shape  of 
hand  or  foot  or  such  like."  ^ 

This  alteration  of  the  body,  at  times  hardly  perceptible, 
at  other  times  extends  very  far. 

"By  the  apprehension  of  the  human  soul,"  says  St. 
Thomas,  "the  human  body  is  changed  as  to  heat  and  cold,  as 
appears  when  a  man  is  angry  or  afraid.  Indeed,  this  change 
sometimes  goes  so  far  as  to  bring  on  sickness  and  death."  ^ 

Thus  we  find  the  philosophical  and  scientific  principles  of 
the  modern  systems  of  healing  clearly  and  comprehensively 
stated  by  the  Schoolmen.  True,  they  were  chary  about  prac- 
tical inferences  flowing  from  them.  So  many  occult  practices, 
so  many  strange  and  unreasonable  hypotheses,  were  then,  as 
now,  blazoned  forth  as  facts  in  the  name  of  science,  that  only 
specialists,  men  well  versed  in  medicine  and  psychology,  could 
see  their  way  dimly  through  this  labyrinth  of  facts  and  fancies. 
The  Scholastics  condemned  as  divinatio  (sorcery)  or  vana  ob- 
servantia  (vain  observances)  whatever  appeared  to  them  as 
plainly  superstitious ;  but  what  was  believed  to  be  capable  of  a 
natural  explanation  was  permitted  to  pass  uncondemned  until  ^ 
time  and  observation  should  clearly  manifest  its  nature.  In 
these  matters  the  early  Scholastics  showed  themselves  eminently 
judicious,  limiting  themselves  to  the  enunciation  of  broad  prin- 
ciples that  could  serve  as  a  guide  and  safeguard  to  all  inquirers 
into  the  mysteries  of  Nature.  Men  were  left  free  to  use  their 
natural  powers  and  abilities  in  the  pursuit  of  natural  effects; 
but  to  introduce  anything  superstitious  was  condemned  as 
sinful. 

^  Swmma  Theologica,  Pars  III,  q.  13,  art.  3:  "Ad  imaginationem  animae 
naturaliter  corpus  immutatur;  et  tanto  magis,  quanto  magis  anima  fuerit 
fortis  imaginationis.  .  .  .  Imaginationi,  si  fuerit  fortis,  naturaliter  obedit 
corpus  quantum  ad  aliqua,  puta  .  .  .  quantum  ad  alterationem  quae  est 
secundum  calorem  et  frigus  et  alia  consequentia,  eo  quod  ex  imaginatione 
consequenter  natae  sunt  consequi  animae  passiones,  secundum  quas  movetur 
cor,  et  sic  per  commotionem  totum  corpus  alteratur;  aliae  vero  dispositiones 
corporales  quae  non  habent  naturalem  ordinem  ad  imaginationem,  non 
transmutantur  ab  imaginatione,  quantumcumque  sit  fortis,  puta,  figura 
manus  vel  pedis  vel  aliquid  simile." 

'Ibid.,  Pars  I,  q.  117,  art.  3:  "Per  apprehensionem  animae  humanae 
immutatur  corpus  humanum  ad  calorem  et  frigus  .  .  .  et  quandoque  etiam 
haec  immutatio  pervenit  usque  ad  aegritudinem  et  mortem." 


150  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"If  natural  objects,"  says  St.  Thomas,  "are  simply  em- 
ployed to  bring  about  some  effects,  for  which  they  are  be- 
lieved to  have  some  natural  virtue,  it  is  not  superstitious  or 
illicit ;  but  if  there  be  added  to  this  either  some  characters  or 
some  words  or  any  other  vain  observances  which  manifestly 
do  not  possess  naturally  any  efficacy,  it  will  be  superstitious 
and  illicit."  ^ 

Such  principles  were  faithfully  adhered  to  in  the  Church, 
and  found  their  application  in  the  works  of  theologians  and 
physicians.  Their  necessity  is  clearly  evinced  by  the  facts  of 
history.  For  the  lack  of  this  sound  basis,  the  new  impulse  given 
to  these  studies  at  the  time  of  the  Renaissance  failed  to  dis- 
criminate between  what  was  based  on  natural  law  and  what  was 
mere  fancy,  between  what  was  certain  and  what  probable  or 
doubtful.  There  came  to  be  made  the  wildest  claims  regarding 
the  curative  power  of  either  mind  or  body.  A  look,  a  word,  an 
application  of  some  indifferent  matter  by  a  privileged  person, 
came  to  be  looked  upon  as  a  powerful  vehicle  of  either  good  or 
evil.  This  opened  the  door  for  many  superstitious  beliefs  and 
practices,  the  hidden  forces  of  nature  being  made  to  sponsor 
many  a  fraud  in  the  name  of  science,  even  as  in  our  days  the 
extravagant  claims  of  many  a  patent-medicine  vender  and  so- 
called  miracle  worker  are  unhesitatingly  accepted  as  the  last 
word  in  medicine.  Since  herbs,  stones,  animals,  contain  cura- 
tive powers,  so  they  argued,  why  should  not  similar  virtues 
exist  in  men  that  were  bom  under  favorable  conditions  ? 

All  this  goes  to  show  that  science  and  superstition  are  close 
neighbors;  superstition  will  always  appeal  to  the  hidden,  the 
mysterious,  the  unknown  forces  of  nature,  to  gain  thereby  some 
show  of  respectability.  But  the  extravagant  fancies  of  the 
superstitious  cannot  invalidate  the  careful  conclusions  of  the 
student  of  nature.  That  the  powers  of  mind  have  been  exag- 
gerated will  not  justify  our  rushing  to  the  opposite  extremes. 

^  Summa  Theologica,  Pars  II,  Il/ae  q.  96,  art.  2,  ad  primum:  "Si  sim- 
pliciter  adhibeantur  res  naturales  ad  aliquos  effectus  producendos,  ad  quos 
putantur  naturalem  habere  virtutem,  non  est  superstitiosum  vel  illicitum; 
si  vero  adiungantur  vel  characteres  vel  aliqua  nomina  vel  aliae  quaecumque 
observationes  quae  manifestum  est  naturaliter  eflficaciara  non  habere,  erit 
superstitiosum  et  illicitum." 


Mind  and  Body  151 

Monism,  be  it  materialistic  or  idealistic,  will  not  give  us  the 
true  explanation  of  the  forces  at  work  in  and  around  us.  The 
truth  is  to  be  found  in  that  golden  mean  which  does  not  give 
too  much  either  to  matter  or  to  mind. 

"Everybody  knows  from  experience,"  says  Dr.  Walsh, 
"how  a  violent  passion  affects  the  whole  body.  Anger,  fear, 
disgust,  worry,  passionate  love,  and  a  number  of  similar  men- 
tal states,  registrate  themselves  automatically  throughout 
man's  physical  body.  So,  likewise,  dread  of  disease,  and, 
generally  speaking,  any  excessive  preoccupation  for  bodily 
health  and  vigor  has  an  effect  on  the  whole  system,  which 
suffers  and  is  rendered  weak  under  the  weight  of  a  preoccu- 
pied mind." 

So  true  is  it  that  sickness,  sorrow,  and  sin  ramify  into  each 
other,  as  would  the  branches  of  trees  in  close  proximity.  Even 
very  ordinary  states  of  mind  may  be  reflected  in  man's  bodily 
constitution,  and,  vice  versa,  ordinary  physical  conditions  may 
affect  man's  spiritual  nature.  Certain  mental  states  are  fa- 
vorable to  a  general  healthy  development;  others,  on  the  con- 
trary are  injurious. 

Enough  has  been  said  to  enable  us  to  judge  intelligently 
concerning  the  admitted  fact  of  successful  mental  cures.  On 
general  principles,  the  possibility  of  mental  healing  cannot  be 
rejected.  The  fact  itself  cannot  be  denied.  Just  as  the  mind 
can  be  the  real  cause  of  real  disease,  so  we  know  that  it  can  be 
the  real  cause  of  real  cures.  The  question,  however,  remains 
whether  the  cures  now  under  discussion  are,  as  a  matter  of 
fact,  explainable  on  this  hypothesis,  or  whether  we  have  to 
adopt  any  of  the  other  explanations  that  have  been  proposed. 
This  will  be  the  subject-matter  of  the  next  chapter.  Provi- 
sionally we  may  indorse  the  following  sentiments  of  Mark 
Twain : 

"No  one  doubts,  certainly  not  I,  that  the  mind  exercises 
a  powerful  influence  over  the  body.  From  the  beginning  of 
time  the  sorcerer,  the  interpreter  of  dreams,  the  fortune 
teller,  the  charlatan,  the  quack,  the  wild  medicine-man,  the 
educated  physician,  the  mesmerist  and  the  hypnotist  have 


16S  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

made  use  of  the  client's  imagination,  to  help  them  in  their 
work.  They  have  all  recognized  the  potency  and  availability 
of  that  force.  Physicians  cure  many  patients  with  a  bread 
pill:  they  know  that  where  the  disease  is  only  a  fancy,  the 
patient's  confidence  in  the  doctor  will  make  the  bread  pill 
effective.  Faith  is  the  doctor.  Perhaps  that  is  the  entire 
thing.  It  seems  to  look  like  it.  In  old  times,  the  king  cured 
the  king's  evil  by  the  touch  of  the  royal  hand.  He  frequently 
made  extraordinary  cures.  Could  his  footman  have  done  it? 
No ! — not  in  his  own  clothes.  Disguised  as  a  king,  could  he 
have  done  it  ?    1  think  we  may  not  doubt  it."  ^ 

^Mark  Twain:  Christian  Science,  p.  34. 


CHAPTER  X 

EXPLANATION  OF  MENTAL  CURES 


It  is  with  a  great  display  of  earnestness  that  Mrs.  Eddy 
ascribes  Christian  Science  cures  to  the  direct  action  of  God. 
Neither  drug  nor  doctor,  neither  nature  nor  hygiene,  neither 
regular  rules  of  life  nor  confidence,  neither  mesmerism  nor 
spiritism,  neither  mortal  mind  nor  faith  nor  will  power,  nor  any 
material  cause  whatever,  according  to  her,  effects  a  cure,  but 
solely  the  all-pervading,  ever-active,  all  good,  and  all  real. 
Divine  Mind,  which  is  more  a  negation  of  disease  than  a  cause  of 
cure.  For  there  is  no  such  thing  as  sickness;  there  are  only 
symptoms,  beliefs  and  illusions  of  sickness,  and  he  that  rids  him- 
self of  these,  rids  himself  also  by  that  very  fact  of  all  disease. 

Christian  Science  explains  its  cures  as  follows:  All  things 
come  from  God,  not  only  indirectly — that  no  one  will  deny — 
but  directly  and  immediately;  they  are  the  thoughts  of  God, 
divine  ideas.  Now,  it  would  be  a  sacrilege,  so  argues  the  Chris- 
tian Scientist,  to  ascribe  to  God.  the  three-fold  error  of  sin, 
sickness,  and  death;  hence,  it  follows  that  these  are  mere  illu- 
sions of  mortal  mind  which  must  cease  as  soon  as  we  cease  to 
believe  in  their  reality.  "If  mankind  would  relinquish  the  be- 
lief that  God  makes  sickness,  sin  and  death,  or  makes  man  cap- 
able of  suffering  on  account  of  this  malevolent  triad,  it  would 
sap  the  foundations  of  error  and  insure  its  destruction.''  ^ 

The  Christian  Scientist  explains  the  cessation  of  evil  by 
stating  that  evil  never  existed.^     He  does  not  deny  the  exist-, 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  357. 

""The  origin  of  evil  is  the  problem  of  ages.  It  confronts  each  genera- 
tion anew.  It  confronts  Christian  Science.  The  question  is  often  asked. 
If  God  created  only  the  good,  whence  comes  the  evil?  To  thi^  question 
Christian  Science  replies:  Evil  never  did  exist  as  an  entity.     It  is  but  a 

153 


164  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

ence  of  the  belief  in  evil,  despite  certain  phrases  that  seem  to 
imply  this ;  on  the  contrary,  it  is  precisely  this  belief  that  is 
the  cause  of  the  world's  misery  and  wretchedness,  and  not  vice 
versa.  In  the  logical  order,  the  belief  is  first,  and  the  wretched- 
ness follows,  but  in  the  real  order  the  belief  itself  is  the  wretch- 
edness.^ 

Destroy,  therefore,  this  belief,  and  you  insure  for  yourself 
perpetual  health,  happiness  and  immortality.  If  you  can  sin- 
cerely believe  that  there  is  no  sickness,  because  man  is  incapable 
of  sickness ;  that  there  is  no  sin,  because  sin  is  unreal ;  and  that 
there  is  no  death,  because  God,  Life,  could  not  create  death — 
this  triad  of  errors  will  vanish,  according  to  the  promises  of 
Mrs.  Eddy,  and  leave  the  world  in  the  condition  of  a  veritable 
Paradise. 

The  apparent  simplicity  of  this  remedy  is  appalling.  This 
simplicity,  however,  disappears  when  it  is  realized  that  it  im- 
plies the  denial  of  all  that  is  most  obvious  to  the  senses.  To 
the  Christian  Scientist  nothing  is  real,  everything  is  unreal  and 
evil  except  God  and  His  ideas,  which,  being  like  God  spiritual, 
must  exclude  matter  and  mortal  mind,  and  all  that  is  condi- 
tioned by  them,  namely  sin,  sickness  and  death. ^  Such  ideas 
bring  their  own  refutation  with  them.  Vainly  does  Mrs.  Eddy 
insist  on  the  errancy  of  the  senses  that  put  us  in  touch  with  the 
material  world,  on  the  impossibility  on  the  part  of  God,  a 
Spirit,  to  create  matter,  the  "antipodes"  of  Spirit,  and  on  the 
incompatibility  of  the  goodness  of  God  with  the  existence  of 
anything  that  is  evil.  These  are  not  arguments ;  they  are 
assertions  with  nothing  to  show  their  truth  beyond  the  bare 

belief  that  there  is  an  opposite  intelligence  to  God."  Miscellaneous  Writ- 
ings, p.  346. 

*  '"Die  sinner  is  not  sheltered  from  suffering  from  sin ;  he  makes  a  great 
reality  of  evil,  identifies  himself  with  it,  fancies  he  finds  pleasure  in  it, 
and  will  reap  what  he  sows;  hence  the  sinner  must  endure  the  effects  of 
his  delusion  until  he  awakes  from  it"  (Ibid.,  p.  14). 

"We  should  blush  to  call  that  real  which  is  only  a  mistake.  The  founda- 
tion of  evil  is  laid  on  a  belief  in  something  beside  God"  {Science  and 
Health,  p.  92). 

'  "The  error  which  saith  Soul  is  in  body,  Mind  is  in  matter,  and  good 
is  in  evil,  must  unsay  it,  and  cease  from  such  utterance;  else  God  will 
continue  to  be  hidden  from  humanity,  and  mortals  will  sin  without  know- 
ing that  they  are  sinning  ...  all  because  of  their  blindness,  their  false 
sense  concerning  God  and  man."    Science  and  Health,  p.  204. 


Explanation  of  Mental  Cures  155 

word  of  the  Founder  of  Christian  Science.  Such  a  complete 
knowledge  of  the  Divine  Nature  as  Mrs.  Eddy  and  her  follow- 
ers pretend  to  possess  has  not  only  not  been  vouchsafed  to  man ; 
it  is  contrary  to  both  reason  and  revelation.^ 

Mrs.  Eddy's  final  argument  is  always  an  appeal  to  the  suc- 
cess of  her  healing  methods ;  but  plainly,  if  there  is  any  other 
explanation  of  these  cures,  if  there  are  parallel  cases  of  healing 
which  Mrs.  Eddy  both  acknowledges  and  disowns — acknowl- 
edges inasmuch  as  they  are  real  cures,  and  disowns,  because  in 
her  judgment,  they  are  not  complete  cures — if  mental  healing 
is  not  peculiar  to  Christian  Science  and  New  Thought,  the  ar- 
gument loses  all  its  force  and  is  no  more  than  a  petitio  primcipn^ 
We  may,  therefore,  safely  pass  on  to  an  examination  of  the 
other  explanations  that  have  been  advanced  to  account  for 
mental  healing,  in  general,  and  for  the  cures  of  Christian  Sci- 
ence and  New  Thought  in  particular. 


n 

The  problem  that  presents  itself  first  is  whether  the  modern 
mind-cures  are  natural  or  supernatural,  whether  they  are  due 
directly  to  natural  causes  or  to  supernatural  beings.  The  pos- 
sibility of  a  supernatural  intervention  on  the  part  of  God  in  be- 
half of  believers  that  in  good  faith  implore  his  help,  cannot  be 
gainsaid.  Nor  is  the  possibility  excluded  that  He  might  allow 
evil  spirits  to  seduce  through  wonderful  cures  such  as  are  will- 
ing to  be  seduced.  Jesus  foretold  that  "there  shall  rise  false 
Christs  and  false  prophets  and  shall  show  great  signs  and  won- 

*The  question  of  the  existence  of  evil  has  been  treated  frequently,  but 
to  some  minds  it  may  always  remain  somewhat  of  a  mystery.  Catholic 
philosophy  broadly  speaking  agrees  with  the  Christian  Scientists  to  the 
extent  of  declaring  evil  a  non-entity,  but  it  differs  from  them  in  main- 
taining that  it  is  not  the  mere  absence  of  being,  but  the  privation  of 
some  being  that  should  be  present.  It  is,  therefore,  not  a  mere  nothing, 
but  it  is  a  defect  in  something.  Catholic  philosophy  does  not  deny  the 
existence  of  evil,  nor  assert  its  incompatibility  with  the  Goodness  of  God. 
True,  God  cannot  be  the  author  of  moral  evil:  his  sanctity  prohibits  this. 
But  He  can  be  the  author  of  what  to  us  seems  evil  without  being  absolutely 
evil.  Moral  evil  does  not  come  from  God,  but  from  the  creatures; 
physical  evil,  including  sickness  and  death,  may  come  from  God  not  as  some- 
thing evil,  but  as  something  accidentally  connected  with  something  good, 
past,  present  or  to  come.  The  whole  question  can  be  studied  with  profit 
in  St.  Thomas:  Summa  Theologica,  Pars  I,  qq.  48  and  49. 


166  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

_^^^r^ii]LSO  much  as  to  deceive  {if  possible)  even  the  elect."  This 
prophecy  creates  not  merely  a  presumption,  but  a  certainty 
that,  at  sometime  or  other,  wonderful  events  will  take  place  that 
must  not  be  ascribed  to  God.  Both  possibilities  consequently 
demand  at  least  brief  consideration,  especially  as  both  of  them 
have  been  mentioned  as  possible  solutions. 

In  harmony  with  the  former  supposition  Father  Searle  says- 
of  the  cures  of  Christian  Science: 

"It  is,  of  course,  possible  that  in  some  of  them  the  belief 
of  the  patients  in  the  power  of  God  to  heal  the  sick  without 
the  help  of  drugs  or  surgery,  which  power  every  Christian 
acknowledges,  may  have  been  rewarded  by  Him ;  and  such  a 
result  would  be  specially  likely  to  occur  in  a  materialistic  age 
like  this,  when  the  possibility  of  it  is  so  generally  denied, 
not  only  by  absolute  infidels,  but  by  non-Catholic  Christians, 
who  have  been  brought  up  to  believe  that  the  age  of  miracles 
has  passed.  Even  incipient  faith  might  be  so  rewarded. 
For  they  were  not  test  cases,  as  it  were,  in  which  the  issue 
lay  between  Eddyan  ideas  and  normal  Christian  ones.  .  .  . 
Outside  of  such  test  cases  miracles  are  not  necessarily  re- 
stricted to  the  one  true  and  complete  faith;  as  we  see,  for 
instance,  of  the  Syro-Phenician  woman,  recorded  in  Mark, 
chapter  7."  ^ 

Arguing  from  a  diametrically  opposite  viewpoint.  Father 
Woods  concludes  his  study  on  Christian  Science  with  these 
words : 

"We  see,  therefore,  that  the  cures  claimed  for  Christian 
Science,  as  a  general  rule,  can  be  proved  improbable  in  in- 
dividual instances,  and,  in  the  gross,  false;  or  else,  they  can 
be  explained  by  perfectly  similar  causes.  Still,  it  is  neither 
impossible  nor  improbable  that  its  votaries  may  be  able,  in 
the  future,  or  even  now,  to  bring  forward  some,  not  to  be 
accounted  for  in  the  natural  way.  It  must  be  remembered 
that,  as  has  been  shown,  Christian  Science  is  not  a  harmless 
craze.  It  is  one  of  the  most  diabolical  of  anti-Christian 
systems,  and  in  it  the  visible  promoters  are  but  tools  of  the 
prime  mover,  the  devil.     He  goes  about  seeking  to  deceive 

*  Searle:  The  Truth  about  Christian  Science  (New  York,  1916),  p.  294. 


Explanation  of  Mental  Cures  157 

men,  and  would  gladly  use  all  the  powers  of  his  angelic  na- 
ture, to  snatch  souls  from  Christ.  He  is  restrained  in  this, 
but  he  is  not  absolutely  prevented.  To  try  our  faith,  some 
manifestations  are  permitted  him.  But  of  these  we  have  been 
warned."  ^ 

These  explanations,  both  tentatively  proposed  as  possibili- 
ties by  our  authors  and  advanced  as  the  true  solution  by 
others,^  are  only  acceptable,  if  no  natural  explanation  exists. 
The  only  safe  rule  to  follow  in  these  matters  is  that  a  natural 
explanation  must  receive  precedence  over  a  supernatural  one, 
because  it  is  impossible  to  prove  the  supernatural  character  of 
anything  where  a  natural  explanation  suffices.  Though  the 
supernatural  may  exist  where  its  existence  cannot  be  proved, 
yet  it  is  at  least  very  improbable  that  it  exists  in  cases  where 
natural  forces  explain  and  where  no  special  character  of  the 
fact  calls  clearly  for  the  intervention  of  supernatural  beings. 
We,  therefore,  turn  our  attention  to  natural  explanations. 

in 

The  cures  of  Christian  Science  have  frequently  been  identi-  ( 
fied  with  mesmeric  or  hypnotic  cures.  The  temptation  to  do  ) 
this  lay  near  owing  to  its  historical  connection  with  mesmerism. 
Mrs.  Eddy  frequently  had  to  defend  herself  against  this  identi- 
fication, and  she  did  this,  as  always,  with  spirit  and  an  assump- 
tion of  superiority  that  stood  her  in  good  stead  with  her  fol- 
lowers. Hypnotism  became  the  enemy  which  she  attacked  at 
every  opportunity.  Her  followers  were  forbidden  under  threat 
of  excommunication  to  study  hypnotism. 

"Sooner  suffer  a  doctor  infected  with  smallpox  to  be  about 
you,"  she  writes  on  one  occasion,  "than  come  under  the 
treatment  of  one  that  manipulates  his  patient's  head  and  is  a 
traitor  to  Science.  .  .  .  There  is  but  one  way  of  doing  wrong 
with  a  mental  method  of  healing,  and  this  is  mesmerism, 
whereby  the  minds  of  the  sick  may  be  controlled  with  error 
instead  of  Truth.  .   .   .  For  years  we  have  tested  the  benefits 

^  Woods:  in  the  Catholic  Mind,  May  22,  1918,  p.  339. 
'  Not  a  few  Protestant  pamphleteers  have  represented  Christian  -Science 
as  the  work  of  the  devil. 


158  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

of  Truth  on  the  body,  and  knew  no  opposite  chance  for  do- 
ing evil  through  a  mental  method  of  healing,  until  we  saw  it 
traduced  by  an  erring  student  and  made  the  medium  of  error. 
Introducing  falsehoods  into  the  minds  of  the  patients  pre- 
vented their  recovery,  and  the  sins  of  the  doctor  were  visited 
on  the  patients  many  of  whom  died  because  of  this."  ^ 

Let  us  admit  hypothetically  this  distinction.  Between  hyp- 
notic cures  and  modern  faith-cures  there  is  a  similarity;  for 
both  have  their  origin  and  source  in  the  mind.  Similarity, 
however,  is  not  identity :  both  Christian  Science  and  New 
Thought  differ  from  hypnotism  by  the  fact  that  they  do  not 
induce  any  hypnotic  sleep.  Both,  however,  agree  with  it  in  so 
far  as  they  address  themselves  at  times  to  what  has  been  called 
the  subconscious  or  subliminal  mind,  that  nondescript  entity 
which  may  perhaps  be  best  paraphrased  as  the  mind  at  rest,  de- 
prived of  its  normal  conscious  and  personal  direction  and  intel- 
lectual guidance,  but  subject  to  other  influences,  be  these  an  un- 
conscious influx  from  other  faculties  of  the  soul,  or  be  they  the 
work  of  other  persons.  The  possibility  that  certain  factors, 
active  in  hypnotism,  are  also  brought  into  play  in  modern  mind- 
cures,  cannot  be  altogether  excluded. 

But  let  us  examine  another  possibility,  that  which  arises 
from  the  efficacy  of  suggestions  even  in  the  waking  state.  It  is 
a  matter  of  everyday  experience  that  in  man's  ordinary  con- 
cerns, without  any  special  theatrical  display  and  mystification, 
suggestions  constantly  influence  the  lives  of  men  in  some  fash- 
ion or  other.  A  look,  a  gesture,  a  word,  a  presence,  may  arouse 
or  calm  you,  may  inspire  you  with  courage  and  noble  aims  or, 
on  the  contrary,  depress  you  with  a  general  apathy  and  weari- 
ness of  life.  Joy  and  sorrow,  love  and  hatred,  courage  and 
pusillanimity — to  mention  only  a  few  of  the  many  affections 
of  the  human  heart — are  constantly  open  to,  and  under  the 
sway  of,  conscious  or  unconscious  suggestions.  These  affec- 
tions, if  prolonged  or  intense,  may  have  a  considerable  bearing 
on  bodily  health  and  physical  well-being.  One  group  makes  for 
good  health,  another  for  disease. 

^Quoted  in  Milmine:  o'p.  cit.,  p.  164.     The  student  herein  referred  to  is 
Richard  Kennedy. 


Explanation  of  Mental  Cures  159 

"I  shall  not  now,"  writes  Dr.  Worcester,  "rehearse  the 
long  list  of  physiological  changes  which  can  be  effected  by 
suggestion.  I  will  mention  only  a  few  which  have  occurred 
under  my  own  observation.  The  temperature  of  the  body  can 
be  elevated  or  lowered,  and  the  pulse  quickened  or  retarded. 
Perspiration  can  be  produced;  the  actions  of  the  intestines 
can  be  stimulated,  resulting  in  the  removal  of  constipation. 
.  .  .  Many  forms  of  pain  depending  on  functional  or  trophic, 
disturbance  can  be  removed,  and  parts  of  the  body  rendered 
insensible  to  pain.  The  sense  of  hearing  in  certain  forms  of 
deafness  can  be  quickened.  Some  forms  of  eczema  can  be 
removed,  and  some  forms  of  asthma  can  be  checked  at  once. 
Stammering  can  be  controlled,  and  nervous  dyspepsia  can 
frequently  be  cured.  To  this  short  list  which  is  taken  almost 
at  random  from  our  clinical  notes,  Bernheim,  Forel,  Bramwell 
and  Dubois  add  many  other  similar  examples  in  support  of 
the  physiological  action  of  suggestion.  They  prove  beyond 
question,  that  our  subconscious  mind  acts  through  the  in- 
strumentality of  our  whole  nervous  system,  both  cerebro- 
spinal and  sympathetic,  and  that  through  this  complex  mech- 
anism it  can  effect  important  changes  in  our  physical  func- 
tions." ^ 

Active  suggestion,  however,  on  the  part  of  the  would-be 
healer,  would  be  ineffective,  did  not  the  mind  of  the  patient  re- 
spond to  this  treatment,  either  consciously  or  unconsciously. 
The  treatment  requires  an  active,  personal,  subjective  coopera- 
tion transforming  a  suggestion  into  a  belief  with  a  soothing, 
quieting  effect  on  the  nervous  system.  There  is  no  transfer  of 
power  from  the  healer  to  the  patient:  the  former  merely  sug- 
gests confidence  and  healing  thoughts,  but  the  results  are  di- 
rectly due,  not  to  him,  but  to  the  patient's  improved  outlook. 
A  little  sympathy  goes  a  long  way  towards  putting  on  his  feet 
the  man  who  is  to  all  appearances  down  and  out. 

But  if  a  patient  could  do  for  himself  what  another  can  do 
for  him,  that  means,  if  he  could  rouse  himself  and  react  against 
mental  depression,  then,  in  many  cases,  this  sort  of  auto-sug- 
gestion would  be  followed  by  exactly  the  same  results.  Writes 
Dr.  Worcester: 

*  Worcester-McComb-Coriat :  Religion  and  Medicine,  p.  40. 


160  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

"At  bottom  suggestion  and  auto-suggestion  are  the  same. 
The  mechanism  of  the  brain  which  carries  into  effect  the 
suggestion  offered  in  a  hypnotic  or  in  a  waking  state,  carries 
into  effect  also  auto-suggestion.  In  the  one  as  in  the  other 
case  there  is  the  same  mental  state  of  heightened  suggesti- 
bility, and  common  to  both  are  the  same  morbid  and  healing 
effects.  Auto-suggestion  may  be  defined,  then,  as  a  self- 
imposed  narrowing  of  the  field  of  consciousness  to  one  idea, 
by  holding  a  given  thought  in  the  mental  focus  to  the  exclu- 
sion of  all  other  thoughts.  This  statement,  of  course,  does 
not  solve  the  problem  of  auto-suggestion;  it  is  intended 
simply  to  express  what  is  meant  by  the  word.  The  thing 
itself,  the  psychical  process  covered  by  the  word,  remains — 
and  it  is  likely  to  remain  for  a  long  time — the  standing  riddle 
of  psychology.  What  it  is  in  its  ultimate  nature,  how  it 
operates  and  what  are  its  physiological  or  nervous  con- 
comitants, no  man  knows.  That  it  is  a  reality,  however,  and 
a  reality  of  the  highest  psychical  and  ethical  significance, 
no  man  may  doubt."  ^ 

The  terms  suggestion  and  auto-suggestion  need  perhaps  a 
word  of  explanation.  To  the  popular  mind  they  represent  some- 
thing artificial  and  unreal,  something  rather  of  self-deception 
than  of  self-expression.  Such  a  restriction  of  meaning  is  not 
warranted  by  the  word :  true  or  false,  normal  or  abnormal,  sug- 
gestion always  remains  suggestion  and  applies  to  all  cases  in 
which  mind  influences  mind.  It  is  commonly  enough  held  to  be 
of  no  avail  as  a  therapeutic  or  curative  agent,  until  it  has  be- 
come the  property  of  the  subconscious  mind.  If  this  means  that 
suggestion  acts  independently  of  consciousness,  so  that  our  con- 
scious states  are  unaware  of  the  modes  of  its  activity,  or  even 
may  be  a  hindrance  to  an  effective  suggestion,  the  statement 
cannot  be  questioned.  But  if  it  is  made  to  convey  the  impres- 
sion that  the  suggestion  itself  must  be  conveyed  unconsciously, 
the  modem  mind-healers  can  point  to  their  practice  as  a  refu- 
tation of  this  meaning. 

The  subconscious  mind  contains  not  only  previously  ac- 
quired knowledge,  but  also  all  unconscious  states  of  the  soul, 
whether  or  not  these  will  eventually  rise  into  consciousness.  It 
^  Worcester-McComb-Coriat:  op.  cit.,  p.  93. 


Explanation  of  Mental  Cures  161 

includes,  on  the  one  hand,  feelings  of  joy  and  contentment,  the 
sense  of  satisfied  desires,  the  sentiment  of  happiness,  the  pleas- 
ure of  being  alive  and  well,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  their  oppo- 
sites:  discontent,  dreads  and  fears  of  all  sorts,  melancholy, 
worry,  anger,  distrust,  hatred,  the  belief  of  being  ill  and  the 
fact  of  being  ill-at-ease  and  out  of  place :  these  are  a  few  of  the 
many  emotions  that  exert  no  mean  influence  over  the  health  of 
the  individual. 

That  all  kinds  of  suggestions,  deliberate  or  otherwise,  have 
a  decisive  influence  in  molding  the  states  of  the  subconscious 
mind,  is  a  commonplace  which  requires  here  no  more  than  a 
bare  mention.  Little  does  it  matter  whether  the  suggestion 
come  from  without  or  from  within,  whether  it  be  intentional  or 
not,  whether  it  be  brought  home  under  ordinary  or  under  extra- 
ordinary conditions,  whether  it  be  intense,  even  violent,  or,  on 
the  contrary,  feeble,  but  persistent.  If  there  is  not,  on  the  part 
of  a  strong  personality,  a  conscious  and  deliberate  counterac- 
tion through  will  power,  morbid  states  of  mind  will  prove  in- 
jurious, while  pleasant  thoughts  and  contented  desires  will 
prove  beneficial  to  health. 

IV 

This  leads  up  to  an  investigation  of  what  might  be  called, 
in  the  absence  of  a  better  name,  the  mechanism  of  mental  heal- 
ing. Whatever  be  men's  views  concerning  the  nature  of  the 
faculties  of  the  soul,  all  must  distinguish  between  cognitive, 
aff'ective  and  appetitive  acts.  Are  these  equally  effective  in 
man's  physico-psychical  life?  Is  an  act  of  the  understand- 
ing, as  Mrs.  Eddy  would  have  it,  the  direct  and  only  agent  for 
mental,  moral  and  physical  health  and  well-being?  Is  the  will 
a  hindrance  rather  than  a  help?  Do  the  affections  have  any 
part  in  preserving  health,  in  causing  and  curing  disease? 
These  problems  need  to  be  looked  into,  though  the  treatment 
of  them  must  be  necessarily  brief. 

For  Mrs.  Eddy  the  human  will  is  something  radically  evil. 
It  is  "but  a  product  of  belief,"  "an  animal  propensity,  ^not  a 
faculty  of  the  Soul."    It  is  "blind,  stubborn  and  headlong  and 


162  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

cooperates  with  appetite  and  passion.  Thence  arises  its  evil. 
Thence  also  comes  its  final  powerlessness,  since  all  power  be- 
longs to  God,  Good."  ^ 

This  conception  of  the  human  will  is  in  line  with  the  Chris- 
tian Science  philosophy  of  the  absolute  All-ness  of  God.  The 
belief  in  a  free  human  agent  with  power  to  act  for  good  or  for 
evil  would,  indeed,  be  out  of  place  there.  Consequently,  these 
assertions  concerning  the  nature  of  the  human  will  are  worth 
just  as  much  and  just  as  little  as  the  philosophy  on  which  they 
depend.  It  may  be,  of  course,  that  they  have  yet  another  foun- 
dation. For  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  Mrs.  Eddy  had  renounced 
Calvinism,  her  views  of  the  total  depravity  of  human  nature  in 
general  and  of  the  human  will  in  particular  are  Calvinistic  and 
seem  to  be  a  relic  of  earlier  Calvinistic  training. 

Men  of  science  take  issue  with  Mrs.  Eddy's  diatribes  on  the 
human  will.  The  most  ordinary  observation  is  sufficient  to 
disprove  the  now  antiquated  contention  of  man's  total  de- 
pravity; the  human  will  is  not  half  as  bad  as  the  Reformers 
represented  it  to  be.  And  when  there  is  question  of  the  will 
influencing  bodily  health  and  vigor,  there  is  now  an  ever  increas- 
ing group  of  men  that  present  the  will,  almost  in  the  same  light 
in  which  Mrs.  Eddy  presents  the  understanding,  as  a  panacea 
for  all  human  ills.^  These  exaggerations  are  not  likely  to  be 
wholly  false;  underlying  them,  there  must  be  a  foundation  of 
truth  which  alone  makes  them  possible.  In  fact,  Dr.  James  J. 
Walsh,  in  his  book  entitled  Health  Through  Will  Power,  has 
shown  how  the  will  or  strong  determination  to  live  has  some- 
times lengthened  life  beyond  all  expectation,  and  how  it  helps 
even  in  such  serious  organic  diseases  as  tuberculosis  and  cancer. 
A  good  illustration  of  the  assistance  that  will  power  lends  in 
the  curing  of  the  alcoholic  habit  is  given  by  Dr.  Austin  O'Malley 
in  his  Cure  of  Alcoholism.     Of  35  patients  treated  in  a  hos- 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  490. 

'^  Works  on  the  cultivation  of  the  will  for  all  kinds  of  concerns  are 
very  numerous.  We  may  mention  Haddock's  Power-Book  Library,  the  first 
and  most  important  volume  of  which  was  in  1917  in  its  135th  edition.  Its 
title  is  Power  of  Will  (Meriden,  Conn.,  1907).  Patterson's  The  Will  to  be 
Well  (New  York,  1901).  Barrett,  S.  J.:  Strength  of  Will  (New  York, 
1915).  We  may  recommend  Walsh,  Health  Through  Will  Power  (Boston, 
19^0)  and  Religion  and  Health  (Boston,  1920). 


¥ 


E applanation  of  Mental  Cures  163 

pital  where  they  were  confined  chiefly  against  their  own  will, 
21.2  per  cent  remained  abstinent  after  eighteen  months,  while 
78.8  per  cent  reverted  to  drunkenness.  On  the  contrary,  of 
375  patients  who  voluntarily  submitted  to  the  same  treatment 
in  a  private  hospital,  87.8  per  cent  remained  sober,  and  only 
12.2  per  cent  relapsed.-*^ 

Important  as  are  the  functions  of  the  will  in  human  economy, 
even  in  so  material  an  aspect  as  physical  health,  yet  they  must 
not  be  exaggerated.  The  will  is  important  in  so  far  as  it  exer- 
cises a  certain  control,  direct  or  indirect,  over  other  faculties,^ 
It  can  induce  the  mind  to  adopt  cheerful  curative  dispositions ; 
it  can  command  the  removal  of  obstacles  that  are  in  the  way 
of  a  permanent  cure ;  it  can  order  the  act  of  faith  which  accepts 
whole-heartedly  the  new  philosophy  of  life,  thus  wielding  un- 
doubtedly a  great  influence  in  the  regaining  and  conserving  of 
health.  Yet,  this  it  does  rather  as  the  physician  that  prescribes 
than  as  the  remedy  that  cures. 

The  will  is  also  important,  because,  although  it  is  the  direc- 
tive faculty,  it  is  itself  quite  open  to  suggestion  and  to  out- 
side influences.  It  is  the  door  through  which  the  re-education 
of  the  inner  life  is  made  possible;  hence  the  insistence  with 
which  psychoanalysts  demand  the  good  will  and  sympathy  of 
their  patients.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  equally  true  that  if 
conscious  eff'ort  under  the  influence  of  the  will  is  sometimes 
useful,  it  is  more  frequently  an  impediment  to  a  favorable  turn 
of  the  disease.  The  will  is,  therefore,  often  of  doubtful  benefit, 
and  experimenting  with  it  may  result  in  more  harm  than  good.^ 

This  brings  us  to  the  intellect  or  cognitive  faculty,  which 
word  is  here  taken  in  a  broad  sense  as  the  faculty  which  receives, 

*0'Malley,  The  Cure  of  Alcoholism  (St.  Louis,  1913),  p.  143. 

^  "In  concluding  the  consideration  of  the  will,  it  may  be  said  that  the 
great  fact  to  be  borne  in  mind  in  regard  to  the  range  of  its  operation  is 
that,  while  it  cannot  influence  (unless  in  a  few  rare  cases)  the  organic 
functions  directly,  it  can  indirectly  through  its  employment  of  other 
mental  forces,  and  can  exert  immense  influence  over  the  irregular  move- 
ments of  the  muscles  and  automatic  cerebral  action."  Tuke:  Influence  of 
the  Mind  upon  the  Body  in  Health  and  Disease  (London,  1872),  p.  350. 

•Dr.  Pierre  Janet  admits  that  Charcot's  experiments  at  La  Salpetri^re 
resulted  in  an  unskillful  training  in  disease.  "Charcot's  hypnotism  with 
its  three  phases  .  .  .  was  never  anything  but  a  cultivated  hypnotism." 
Janet:  Les  Medications  psychologiques   (Paris,  1919),  Vol.  I,  p.  169. 


164  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

weighs  and  classifies  images  and  thoughts,  supplied  either  by 
the  external  world  through  sense  perceptions,  or  by  our  inner 
world  of  instinctive  and  temperamental  experience.  In  this 
sense,  the  cognitive  faculties  comprehend  not  merely  the  intel- 
lect, but  perception  of  mental  images,  conception  and  associa- 
tion of  ideas,  judgments  and  reasoning  processes,  memory  and 
imagination.  Mrs.  Eddy  ascribes  all  her  success  to  understand- 
ing, restricting  the  meaning  of  this  word  to  signify  exclusively 
the  adoption  of,  and  belief  in,  her  theories  concerning  the  spir- 
ituality, the  one-ness  and  goodness  of  God  and  the  unreality  of 
everything  else.  It  goes  without  saying  that  we  ascribe  no 
special  virtue  to  these  concepts,  and  that  we  take  the  word  un- 
derstanding in  its  ordinary  connotation. 

Of  singular  interest  for  our  present  study  is  the  fact  that 
the  intellect  perceives  things  as  either  good,  bad  or  indifferent. 
If  it  were  not  so,  the  intellect  would  probably  have  no  influence 
whatever  over  bodily  health.  For  experience  shows  that  what 
the  intellect  perceives  as  a  present  good,  invigorates,  stimu- 
lates, restores  and  quickens  the  vital  powers  of  man,  while,  on 
the  contrary,  what  it  believes  to  be  a  present  evil,  naturally  de- 
presses, saddens  and  frequently  sickens  hirii.^  It  matters  not, 
as  far  as  bodily  health  is  concerned,  whether  these  beliefs  are  in 
conformity  with  intellectual  Truth :  if  the  mind  is  convinced  be- 
yond cavil  or  doubt  that  it  is  in  full  possession  of  the  true  and 
the  good,  it  is  in  the  best  possible  condition  for  enjoying 
excellent  health. 

It  is  under  this  general  concept  of  intellection  that  we  must 
place  the  subordinate  concept  of  imagination.  The  word  has 
been  purposely  avoided  so  far,  because  but  too  often  the  popu- 
lar mind  associates  it  with  the  unreal.  People  speak  of  imagi- 
nary disease  and  of  imaginary  cures  as  of  such  that  have  no 
reality.  Cures,  according  to  that  view,  occur  because  in  the 
first  place  the  disease  itself  was  only  imaginary,  that  means 
unreal.  How  far  this  is  from  being  the  truth  could  be  demon- 
strated by  numberless  examples.    Imagination  can  be,  and  often 

^  An  exception  to  this  is  the  case  when  a  joyful  news  so  strongly  aifects 
the  nervous  system,  and,  through  it,  the  action  of  the  heart  that  it  takes 
away  life.     Man's  powers  of  endurance  are  limited  in  every  direction. 


Explanation  of  Mental  Cures  165 

is,  the  cause  of  very  real  bodily  ailments,  and  so  likewise,  imag- 
ination can  be,  and  often  is,  the  cause  of  very  real  cures.  As 
Dr.  Dubray  succinctly  puts  it  in  his  excellent  Introductory 
Philosophy: 

"The  importance  of  imagination,  both  for  good  and  for 
^  bad,  can  hardly  be  overestimated ;  it  is  a  useful,  yet  danger- 
ous power.  .  .  .  Imagination  exercises  a  great  influence  on 
the  health  of  the  organism,  because  ideas  are  not  only  repre- 
sentative, but  also  motor.  Many  illustrations  of  this  could 
be  given.  Do  we  not  see  frequently  imaginary  ills  leading  to 
real  sickness?  To  imagine  that  you  are  sick  is  one  of  the 
best  ways  to  become  truly  sick,  and  to  avoid  thinking  of  your 
real  sickness  frequently  proves  to  be  a  powerful  help  in  the 
cure.  The  use  of  an  appropriate  remedy  is  in  itself  very 
beneficial,  but  the  conviction  that  it  is  beneficial  and  that 
it  will  produce  a  certain  result  makes  it  twice  as  eff^ective. 
Imagination  without  the  remedy  may  even  produce  thG| 
desired  result.  Cases  might  be  cited  of  persons  who  felt  sure 
they  had  taken  a  certain  medicine,  and  indeed  experienced 
the  result  of  it,  and  who  later  found  the  pill  which,  in  fact, 
they  had  forgotten  to  take.  There  is  a  better  chance  for  the 
man  who  has  made  up  his  mind  to  get  well  than  for  the  one 
who  imagines  that  he  will  die,  and  despairs."  ^ 

Far  from  being  a  new  discovery  the  knowledge  of  this  power 
of  the  imagination  belongs,  so  to  say,  to  the  traditions  of  the 
School.  The  teaching  of  St.  Thomas  has  already  been  outlined 
at  some  length.  A  few  centuries  later,  the  famous  Jesuit  writer 
Martin  Delrio  (1551-1608)  gives  us  an  instructive  glimpse  into 
the  scientific  mind  of  his  period  regarding  the  powers  of  the 
imagination. 

"In  this  all  agree  that  the  power  of  the  imagination  is 
very  great,  and  since  this  power  can  either  be  regarded  in 
relation  to  the  body  of  him  who  imagines,  or  in  relation  to 
the  body  of  some  one  else,  we  must  inquire  separately  into 
each  case.  All  agree  that  the  imagination  has  a  very  power- 
ful influence  on  the  body  of  him  who  does  the  imagining.  .  .  . 
As  to  other  bodies,  some  hold  that  the  power  of  the  imagina- 

^  Dubray:  Introductory  Philosophy  (Longmans,  New  York,  1912),  p.  79. 


166  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

tion  extends  exceedingly  far,  so  that  it  could  fascinate  or 
cure  persons  even  at  great  distances.   .  .  ."  ^ 

Another  testimony  to  the  belief  of  past  ages  in  the  power 
of  the  imagination  will  be  of  more  than  ordinary  interest.  In 
his  monumental  work  De  Servorum  Dei  Beatific atione.  Pope 
Benedict  XIV  (1675-1758)  discusses  at  great  length  the  ques- 
tion how  to  discriminate  real  from  merely  apparent  miracles. 
Laying  down  as  a  basic  principle  that  we  must  not  call  miracu- 
lous what  can  be  explained  by  natural  forces,  he  gives  the  fol- 
lowing conclusions  of  his  painstaking  inquiry  into  the  extent 
of  imagination : 

"It  first  appears,"  he  says,  "that  certain  diseases,  spring- 
ing from  the  imagination,  can  be  cured  naturally  by  the 
power  of  the  contrary  imagination.  .  .  .  Secondly,  it  ap- 
pears that  the  imagination  can  often  cause  purgations  and 
vomitings  through  which  the  sick  man  regains  his  health; 
.  .  .  Thirdly,  it  appears  that  the  natural  power  of  the 
imagination  can  extend  so  far  as  to  suppress  for  a  time  the 
sting  of  the  pains  that  affect  the  body.  .  .  .  Fourthly  it  ap- 
pears that  even  in  gra^ve  diseases  the  imagination  can  help 
along  the  cure  which,  however,  will  not  be  sudden,  but  grad- 
ual. .  .  .  Finally,  it  even  appears  that  perhaps  at  times  dis- 
eases can  be  cured  instantaneously  by  the  power  of  the 
imagination,  but  that  such  a  cure  is  not  permanent,  and  that 
a  relapse  will  follow.'*  ^ 

^Martin  Delrio:  Disquisitionum  Magicarum  libri  sex  (Munich,  1624),  p. 
14:  In  eo  conveniunt  omnes,  imaginationis  vim  esse  maximam;  et  quia  vis 
haec  considerari  potest  vel  quoad  corpus  ipsius  imaginantis,  vel  quoad 
corpus  alterius,  ideo  de  utroque  seorsim  disquirendum.  Conveniunt  omnes 
quoad  corpus  proprium  imaginantis  plurimum  in  illud  posse.  .  .  .  Quoad 
corpus  alienum  nonnuUi  censent  imaginationis  vim  se  longissime  porrigere, 
adeo  ut  possit  etiam  remotiora  fascinari  vel  sanare.  .  .  . 

^Benedict  XIV:  De  Servorum  Dei  Beatifications,  etc.  (Romae,  1749), 
lib.  IV,  pp.  526  ff.:  Primum  dicendum  esse  videtur  morbos  quosdam,  ab 
imaginatione  ortos,  viribus  contrariae  imaginationis  naturaliter  toUi  posse. 
.  .  .  Secundum  dicendum  esse  videtur  ab  imaginatione  saepe  purgationes  et 
vomitus  causari  posse  ex  quibus  aeger  sanitatem  consequatur.  .  .  .  Tertio 
dicendum  esse  videtur  posse  vim  naturalem  imaginationis  eo  usque  se 
extendere  ut  impetum  dolorum  qui  corpus  afficiunt  ad  tempus  reprimere 
valeat.  .  .  .  Quarto  dicendum  esse  videtur  posse  imaginationem  in  gravibus 
etiam  morbis  sanitati  prodesse,  non  momento  tamen,  sed  paulatim  obtin- 
endae.  .  .  .  Dicendum  tandem  esse  videtur,  forsitan  posse  aliquando  morbos 


Explanation  of  Mental  Cures  167 

This  analysis  of  the  case,  made  long  ago  by  Benedict  XIV, 
can  hardly  be  improved  upon  even  in  our  own  days.  And  yet 
the  imagination  does  not  seem  to  be  the  immediate  factor  in 
mental  cures.  It  is  only  in  so  far  as  it  arouses  sense  affections 
that  it  possesses  any  healing  influence.  Thought  can  be  con- 
ceived as  neutral,  taking  sides  neither  one  way  nor  the  other.  It 
is  thus  that  an  egotist  may  view  the  concerns  of  others  for  whom 
he  feels  no  special  interest.  But  not  so  the  affections.  The 
affections  directly  and  immediately  link  the  spiritual  to  the 
animal  man,  the  mental  faculties  to  the  bodily  elements.  They 
are  the  personal  reflections  of  the  mental  states,  stronger  in 
some,  less  so  in  others.  By  means  of  their  stimulating  effect  on 
the  nervous  system,  and  through  it  on  the  heart,  they  permeate, 
so  to  say,  the  whole  organism  and  predispose  it,  as  the  case  may 
be,  either  to  sickness  or  to  health.  Thus,  strong  feelings, 
especially  when  frequently  repeated,  or  when  well-nigh  continu- 
ous, are  bound  to  reverberate  throughout  the  body  and  have 
a  marked  effect  on  the  general  state  of  health. 

The  heart  was  long  considered  the  very  seat  of  emotional 
life.  This  conception  has  entered  into  the  language  of  all  na- 
tions. Every  one  speaks  of  men  of  large,  mean,  ardent,  faint, 
strong  hearts  to  indicate  their  personal  characters.  Even 
though  modern  science  has  instructed  us  as  to  the  real  consti- 
tution of  the  material  heart,  and  properly  describes  it  as  a 
muscle,  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  it  is  a  muscle  sui  generis, 
unique  in  its  kind,  with  functions  all  its  own.  Through  it  pulses 
the  life  blood  in  a  never  ceasing  rhythm,  thus  feeding  at  every 
second  every  section  of  the  human  organism.  Long  before 
there  is  even  a  trace  of  the  brain  in  the  embryo,  the  heart  is 
formed  and  begins  its  work  which  will  not  cease  till  the  soul 
departs.  This  sensitive  organ  is  peculiarly  open  to  affective 
impulses.  Like  a  delicate  needle  it  responds  unconsciously  to 
the  varying  impressions  of  the  mind,  and  transmutes  them,  so 
to  say,  into  material  values.  Thus  it  still  remains  preeminently 
the  organ  of  the  affections,  and  serves  directly  the  interests  of 

momento  sanari  vi  imaginationis,  sanitatem  tamen  non  diirare,  sed  recidivam 
aut  metastasim  sequi.  ...  ^ 


168  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

mental  cures,  as  it  is  also  directly  responsible  for  diseases  that 
have  their  root  principally  in  the  mind.^ 
To  quote  Dr.  Sadler: 

"It  is  evident  that  faith  and  fear  are  able  profoundly  to 
influence  the  nerve  centers  which  regulate  and  maintain  heart 
action.  The  action  of  the  heart  is  most  natural  and  regular 
when  it  is  least  thought  of.  The  care-free  mental  state 
favors  natural  heart  action.  On  the  other  hand,  fear  and 
every  form  of  mental  anxiety  interfere  with  the  natural  ac- 
tion of  the  heart,  in  common  with  the  action  of  all  the  other 
vital  organs.  .  .  .  The  healthy  heart  beats  quietly  and  regu- 
larly when  the  mind  is  at  peace  and  free  from  fear.  Faith 
is  the  ideal  and  natural  mental  state,  so  far  as  healthy  heart 
action  is  concerned.  Any  agitation  of  the  mind  almost  im- 
mediately produces  a  conscious  thumping  of  the  heart 
against  the  chest  wall.  The  relation  between  the  mental  state 
and  the  heart  muscle  is  direct,  and  the  response  of  the  heart 
muscle  to  mental  disturbance  is  immediate,  well  defined,  and 
clearly  established."  ^ 


Now  let  us  apply  these  considerations  to  the  modem  mind- 
cure  movements.  They  must  originate  a  real  revolution  in  the 
minds  of  their  followers.  They  must  banish  forever  all  dis- 
content, since  the  fundamental  tenet  of  their  new  religion  is  the 
optimistic  doctrine  that  God  Who  is  All-in-all  is  the  author  of 
all  and  infinitely  good.  The  thought  even  of  the  possibility  of 
sickness  cannot  be  tolerated,  because  this  would  be  a  violation 
of  one  of  the  principal  tenets  of  the  newly  found  faith.  This 
changed  mode  of  life,  with  the  changed  frame  of  mind,  the 
setting  of  all  worries  at  defiance,  the  giving  up  of  medicine, 
the  deliberate  quietus  put  on  the  nerves,  the  continual  mental 
discipline,  all  this  brings  about  a  gradual  improvement  and, 
finally,  a  real  cure  of  real  and  not  merely  imaginary  diseases. 
On  its  negative  side,  this  changed  outlook  on  life  does  away 
with  those  many  mental  disorders  which  weigh  like  an  incubus 

*Cf.  Walsh,  in  Catholic  Mind,  February  8,  1909,  p.  41,  article  "Psycho- 
therapy." 

^  Sadler,  The  Physiology  of  Faith  and  Fear,  p.  118. 


E applanation  of  Mental  Cures  169 

on  many  a  wretched  soul,  and  on  its  positive  side,  it  quickens 
and  brightens  life  by  considerations  that  render  it  full  of  cheer 
and  happiness. 

The  results  are  of  the  most  gratifying  kind  and  add  to  the 
hopes  engendered  by  the  new  faith.  As  Miss  Reed  graphically 
puts  it : 

"Deep-rooted  in  the  heart  of  humanity  is  the  conviction 
that  it  is  God's  original  purpose  that  man  should  express 
human  perfection ;  and  if  only  we  can  set  aside  a  few  annoy- 
ing facts  of  history,  and  the  still  more  disquieting  burden  of 
personal  experience,  and  see  ourselves  at  once  transformed 
into  paragons  of  virtue  and  unerring  expressions  of  divinity, 
surely,  this  conception  must  be  both  tranquilizing  and  stimu- 
lating. 

"Such  is  the  mental  revolution  which  follows  conversion 
to  Christian  Science.  This  happy  consciousness  of  personal 
superiority  is  maintained  by  continual  mental  discipline. 
There  is  no  suggestion  of  hypnotism  about  this,  and  it  is 
unfortunate  when  their  results  are  ascribed  to  a  condition  in 
which  will-power  is  so  conspicuously  absent.  In  case  after 
case  the  phenomena  of  healing  by  Christian  Science  disprove 
the  theory,  so  generally  accepted,  that  the  subconscious 
mind  is  in  more  intimate  relation  to  the  functions  of  the 
body  than  the  normal  supraliminal  mind;  for  they  demon- 
strate that,  where  the  reason  is  convinced  of  supernormal 
power  or  the  impossibility  of  personal  danger,  the  physical 
expressions  of  this  conviction  are  as  definite  as  under  hyp- 
notism. 

"Let  us  now  think  of  the  physical  effects  of  the  Negations 
and  Affirmations  of  a  Christian  Scientist.  Take  the  case  of 
a  lady  whose  whole  thought  as  well  as  that  of  her  entire 
family  is  centered  upon  her  physical  condition,  perhaps  a 
truly  pitiable  one,  and  whose  mental  life  is  one  of  genuine 
terror:  her  mind  concentrated  on  the  possible  deadly  effect 
of  each  mouthful  of  food;  afraid  to  try  and  live  without 
drugs,  yet  thrown  into  a  state  of  apprehension  by  each  new 
prescription;  afraid  of  the  breath  of  fresh  air,  though  con- 
vinced that  her  death  is  imminent  because  of  the  lack  of  it — 
such  a  patient  (and  what  physician  is  not  acquainted  with 
this  lady)  decides  to  try  Christian  Science.    She  soon  realizes 


170  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

that  the  first  thing  to  do  is  to  live  up  to  the  theory  that 
there  is  no  reality  behind  her  former  fears,  and  this  she  pro- 
ceeds to  do.  Her  mental  determination  would  be  of  no  thera- 
peutic value,  but  the  results  which  logically  follow  are  of 
stupendous  importance. 

"The  bath  chair  attendant  is  dismissed  (there  is  often 
the  most  heroic  courage  exhibited  in  these  first  efforts)  and 
regular  exercise  is  taken;  sufficient  food  is  eaten,  unsalted 
by  tears  and  unaccompanied  by  dread.  As  she  does  not 
now  acknowledge  any  cause  for  self-reproach  or  anxiety  for 
herself  or  any  one  else,  her  sleep  is  sound  and,  therefore,  re- 
freshing. If  we  are  told  that  such  a  convert  has  in  a  few 
months  grown  to  look  years  younger,  why  on  earth  should 
we  doubt  it,  when  the  physical  explanation  is  so  obvious  ? 

"This  practice  of  leading  a  normal  life  is  not  a  spasmodic 
one,  for  she  is  undaunted  by  the  actual  pain  which  results, 
and  both  denies  and  ignores  the  reality.  Every  physician 
knows  how  trammeled  Nature  is  by  the  self-limitations  im- 
posed by  patients  because  of  the  discomfort  experienced  as 
the  result  of  effort.  This  element  of  interference  is  wholly 
eliminated  by  the  practices  of  the  Scientist,  and  Nature 
which  perhaps  for  years  has  been  struggling  to  restore  phys- 
ical poise,  but  has  been  baffled  at  every  point  by  the  paralyz- 
ing effect  of  mental  conditions,  now  finds  itself  working  under 
the  most  ideal  habits  of  mind  and  body. 

"The  body  is  so  thankful  to  be  relieved  of  this  mental 
interference  that  it  does  not  mind  in  the  least  that,  in  order 
to  accomplish  this,  its  very  existence  is  hourly  consigned  to 
extinction.  Whether  the  disease  from  which  such  a  person 
has  suffered  is  functional  or  organic,  is  irrelevant,  so  far  as 
possible  improvement  is  concerned.  Nature  makes  no  distinc- 
tion in  her  efforts ;  were  this  not  true,  the  physician's  work 
would  end  with  the  commencement  of  structural  changes. 
Up  to  the  hour  of  death,  there  is  always  the  chance  that  in 
spite  of  seemingly  insurmountable  obstacles,  the  vital  power 
of  restoration  may  respond  to  assistance  and,  if  not  entirely 
overcome  the  disease,  at  least  prolong  life."  ^ 

This  long  citation  is  not  only  applicable  to  Christian  Scien- 
tists, but  also  to  the  followers  of  the  New  Thought  movement. 

*Reed:    Christian  Science   and   Contra^sting    Christian    Truth,   Vol.    Ill, 
S.  B.  8. 


Explanation  of  Mental  Cures  171 

Their  faith  in  a  very  literal  sense  contributes  to  make  them 
whole.  This  accounts  in  no  small  degree  for  their  extraor- 
dinary success.  What  appealed  to  the  people  is  neither  Mrs. 
Eddy's  philosophy  nor  her  religion,  but  the  promise  of  being 
cured.  The  cures  themselves  really  rest  on  an  entirely  different 
foundation;  but  many  people  do  not  take  the  trouble  of  dis- 
tinguishing between  the  two.  The  new  mind-movements  promise 
to  cure;  at  the  same  time  they  offer  an  explanation  of  their 
cures  and  assert  that  the  cure  is  conditioned  by  their  explana- 
tion. If  the  cure  really  takes  place,  the  unreflecting  multitude 
will  accept  the  explanation  along  with  the  cure  without  any 
further  ado.  They  are  like  a  crowd  eagerly  watching  a  con- 
juror perform  his  tricks  and  accepting  his  explanation  of  how 
he  does  them,  when,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  this  explanation  only 
served  to  distract  their  attention  from  what  he  was  doing  in 
reality.  So  also  in  the  modern  mind-cure  movements  fact  and 
theory  must  be  carefully  kept  apart.  The  facts  we  are  ready 
to  admit,  but  we  maintain  that  the  explanation  of  the  cure 
does  not  lie  with  the  systems  that  exploit  the  cure,  but  must 
be  sought  in  certain  natural  principles. 


\ 


CHAPTER   XI 


THE  RELIGIOUS   TENETS 


It  has  been  seen  that  Mrs.  Eddy  held  out  religion  as  a  bait 
that  might  make  Quimbyism  acceptable  to  the  masses.  This 
statement  must  not  be  taken  to  mean  that  Mrs.  Eddy  con- 
sciously commercialized  religion  for  the  mere  purpose  of  suc- 
cess in  her  undertaking.  True,  she  had  the  ambition  to  become 
a  religious  founder;  she  gloried  in  the  hope  that  church  bells 
might  one  day  ring  out  her  birthday,  and  repeatedly  boasted 
that  she  was  writing  a  bible:  but  so  complex  are  the  workings 
of  the  human  mind  that  it  is  difficult  to  say  to  what  extent 
the  desires  of  the  heart  produced  real  conviction  in  the  mind, 
and  how  far  conviction  exultingly  anticipated  success.  Mrs. 
Eddy  probably  enough  believed  in  her  own  teaching;  she  prob- 
ably was  convinced  that  Mind  and  God  were  one  and  the  same 
and  the  only  reality;  she  may  even  have  persuaded  herself 
(however  unbelievable  this  may  seem  to  us)  that  she  was  the 
divinely  chosen  instrument  for  establishing  a  new  and  more 
complete  revelation.  She  no  doubt  believed  in  the  possibility  of 
mental  cures ;  she  must  also  be  credited  with  sufficient  shrewd- 
ness to  realize  the  importance  of  religion  in  such  an  under- 
taking as  hers.  All  her  natural  abilities  were  thus  enlisted  for 
the  natural  success  of  a  natural  cause.  Religion  came  in  as  a 
means,  but  not  merely  as  a  means,  but  also  as  an  end.  For  Mrs. 
Eddy's  religious  bent  was  such  that  it  could  not  but  find  a 
prominent  place  in  her  system  of  healing.^ 

The  same  remarks  may  apply  to  the  New  Thought  move- 
ment. Though  it  forms  no  distinct  and  united  church  organiza- 
tion and  lays  no  claim  to  a  new  revelation,  yet  its  basis  is  dis- 
tinctly religious.    Most  of  its  followers  accept  a  sort  of  Liberal 

*Cf.  Miscellaneous  Writings,  p.  311;  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  138,  182, 

172 


The  Religious  Tenets  173 

Christianity,  speak  of  God  with  great  unction,  and  hold  funda- 
mentally the  same  beliefs  as  the  Christian  Scientists.  We  can- 
not help  calling  attention  here  to  a  curious  anomaly.  While 
apparently  holding  a  most  prominent  place  in  these  modern 
mind  movements,  religion,  in  reality,  occupies  a  very  inferior 
and  secondary  rank.  If  its  prominence  comes  from  the  fact 
that  it  serves  as  a  basis  for  their  healing  methods,  its  inferiority 
is  due  to  the  same  fact ;  for  it  constantly  remains  subordinated 
to  the  supreme  purpose  of  healing  and  mental  culture. 

This  is  at  once  its  strength  and  its  weakness.  The  prag- 
matist,  for  whom  results  alone  count,  and  who  makes  practical 
usefulness  the  supreme  test  of  truth,  must  endorse  Christian 
Science  and  New  Thought  for  the  good  they  effect.  But  if 
results  alone  are  not  an  infallible  guide  to  truth,  such  a  test 
is  unacceptable.  For  those  who  believe  that  God  has  not  left 
his  creatures  in  mental  darkness  and  anarchy,  but  has  revealed 
to  them  His  holy  Will  and  has  safeguarded  this  revelation 
against  all  danger  of  perversion,  for  such  there  can  be  but 
one  measure  of  the  truth  of  a  religion,  namely  whether  it  con- 
forms to  the  standard  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ. 

The  modern  mind-movements  are  not  Christian.  The  most 
fundamental  tenets  of  Christianity  are  slurred  over,  misrepre- 
sented, ignored  or  completely  rejected.  And  those  doctrines 
that  have  found  a  quiet  nook  within  the  sacred  precincts  of 
Scientism  are  mostly  out  of  place ;  they  appear  like  a  stranger 
within  the  gate  unheeded,  unwelcome  and  unnecessary.  They 
are  there,  because  they  were  in  the  minds  of  the  Christian  Scien- 
tist, before  he  became  an  adept  of  Christian  Science,  and  it 
was  deemed  either  useful  to  retain  them,  or  not  worth  while 
to  reject  them.  There  is  one,  and  just  one,  religious  doctrine 
that  really,  seems  essential  in  these  modem  cults,  namely  the 
doctrine  of  the  spirituality  and  universality  of  God.  To  be- 
lieve in  God  as  the  one  reality  and  as  essentially  good  is  the 
summary  of  a  modern  mind-healer's  creed.  That  in  spite  of 
their  contempt  of  all  doctrine  these  reformers  should  try  to 
graft  their  metaphysical  theories  on  the  tree  of  historical  Chris- 
tianity was  to  be  expected.     To  do  otherwise  would  haye  been 


114s  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

to  invite  relative  failure  from  the  very  start. ^  Of  love  for  the 
Church  or  the  churches  there  was  none.  Mrs.  Eddy  never 
pretended  to  make  Christian  Science  acceptable  to  the  sects, 
but,  on  the  contrary,  compelled  her  followers  to  break  with 
their  former  religious  affiliations.^  The  same  more  or  less  open 
hostility  is  evident  in  practically  all  prominent  leaders  of  the 
movement.  None  of  them  evinced  any  preoccupation  to  in- 
vestigate the  revealed  truth  fairly  and  historically.  They 
merely  set  up  the  word  of  a  new  master  or  leader  against  the 
teaching  and  leadership  of  Christ.  And  if  they  did  found  new 
religious  organizations  that  kept  the  name  Christian,  their 
main  aim,  it  would  seem,  was  to  have  a  religion  to  offer  to  their 
prospective  disciples  which,  by  retaining  the  Christian  name, 
would  leave  them  under  the  illusion  that  they  had  not  given  up 
what  they  prized  most. 

With  the  possible  exception  of  her  idea  of  the  inexistence  of 
matter  and  evil,  Mrs.  Eddy  took  her  Christianity  as  she  found 
it  in  New  England  Unitarianism,  with  which  it  is  in  the  main 
identical,  neither  better  nor  notably  worse.  With  the  liberal 
and  modernistic  school  of  theology  she  proposes  to  serve  Truth 
"independent  of  doctrines  and  time-honored  systems."  ^  The 
open  contradiction  contained  in  this  statement  escapes  them. 
People  may  reject  such  or  such  a  doctrine  or  set  of  doctrines, 
but  to  reject  all  doctrinal  teaching  and  still  pretend  to  serve  or 
teach  truth  is  an  impossibility.  Positive  doctrines  may  be  re- 
placed by  negative  ones ;  this  doctrine  may  be  replaced  by  that 
one ;  but  doctrinal  teaching  as  such  cannot  be  abolished.  Chris- 
tianity, in  particular,  must  always  be  doctrinal,  or  cease  to  be 
Christian. 

*Cf.  Dresser:  History,  p.  312:  "The  New  Thought  has  doubtless  played 
a  part  in  emancipating  people  from  the  old  theology.  The  connection 
between  the  New  Thought  and  religious  liberalism  has  been  more  pro- 
nounced since  1895.  The  first  people  to  leave  the  Church  and  espouse 
mental  healing  were  formerly  orthodox.  But  more  Unitarians  and  other 
religious  liberals  changed  over  after  a  time.  The  implied  theology  of  the 
New  Thought  has  always  been  liberal." 

'^  Church  Manual,  Art.  4,  sect.  2:  "This  Church  will  receive  a  member  of 
another  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist,  but  not  a  church  member  from  a 
different  denomination  until  that  membership  is  dissolved." 

*  Science  and  Health,  Preface,  p.  vii. 


The  Religious  Tenets  175 

Though  minimizing  traditional  dogma,  neither  Christian 
Science  nor  New  Thought  is  without  doctrinal  basis.  We  have 
insisted  sufficiently  on  their  fundamental  dogmas  of  the  One- 
ness and  All-ness  of  God,  of  the  inexistence  of  evil  and  the  im- 
possibility of  matter.  What  remains  to  be  noticed  is  their 
attitude  towards  the  positive  teachings  of  Christianity. 

Christian  Science  has  repeatedly  been  identified  more  or  less 
with  various  ancient  heresies.  It  has,  in  turn,  been  charged 
with  being  Manichean,  Gnostic  or  Docetic  in  doctrine,  and  anti- 
nomian  in  ethics.  The  truth  is  that  Christian  Science  cannot 
be  identified  with  any  one  heresy,  either  ancient  or  modem, 
though  undoubtedly  it  has  incorporated  elements  that  were  dis- 
tinctive of  ancient  sects  as  well  as  elements  distinctive  of 
modern  thought.  To  judge  only  from  appearances,  nothing 
seems  to  be  farther  from  the  truth  than  an  identification  of 
Christian  Science,  with  its  insistence  on  the  One-ness  of  God, 
and  Manicheism,  with  its  dualism  of  the  two  irreconcilable  and 
eternal  principles  of  Good  and  Evil.  And  yet,  is  not  Mrs. 
Eddy's  anomalous  teaching  concerning  malicious  animal  mag- 
netism, which  is  practically  omnipotent,  the  nearest  approach 
to  Manicheism? 

Again,  Gnosticism,  with  its  numberless  asons  and  its  hier- 
archy of  spirits,  seems  to  be  a  long  way  from  anything  that 
Christian  Science  teaches.  And  yet.  Christian  Science  is  akin 
to  Gnosticism  by  making  understanding  or  science  its  issue  in 
opposition  to  faith.  While  the  Christian  Church  has  always 
exalted  the  act  of  faith  as  the  essential  act  of  religion,  the 
Gnostics,  and  with  them  the  Christian  Scientists,  depreciate 
faith,  in  order  to  exalt  what  they  label  gnosis,  understanding  or 
science,  but  what  in  truth  is  nothing  but  a  figment  of  their 
fertile  imagination.  So,  likewise,  is  it  easy  to  see  some  analogy 
between  the  Gnostic  (Bons  that  emanate  from  God,  and  Mrs. 
Eddy's  conception  of  the  divine  ideas,  which  are  thoroughly 
spiritual,  and  yet  so  real  as  to  be  the  only  reality  we  know. 
Finally,  a  group  of  Gnostics  based  themselves  on  the  Bible  as 
the  word  of  God,  but  insisted  on  the  absolute  necessity  of  giving 
it  an  allegorical  interpretation ;  thus  does  Mrs.  Eddy  adyocate 


176  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

a  spiritual  interpretation  which,  while  it  neglects  the  literal 
meaning,  is  to  her  the  real  interpretation  and  the  Key  to  the 
Scripture.^ 

Let  us  pass  on  to  the  charge  of  docetism  leveled  against 
Mrs.  Eddy.  The  charge  can  only  be  true  in  the  sense  that  Mrs. 
Eddy  divides  Christ.  She  made  a  real  distinction  between  Jesus, 
the  man,  and  Christ,  the  divine  ideal  that  had  taken  possession 
of  him.  "Jesus  is  the  human  man,  and  Christ,  the  divine  Ideal," 
says  Mrs.  Eddy;  "hence  the  duality  of  Jesus,  the  Christ."  In 
her  Glossary,  she  declares  Jesus  to  be  "the  highest  human 
corporeal  concept  of  the  divine,  rebuking  and  destroying  error 
and  bringing  to  light  man's  immortality";  and  Christ  she  de- 
fines as  "the  divine  manifestation  of  God  which  comes  to  the 
flesh,  to  destroy  incarnate  error."  ^  The  Christ  can,  there- 
fore, be  as  readily  in  Mrs.  Eddy  as  in  the  prophet  of  Nazareth. 

From  this  it  follows  that  Christian  Science  is  anti- 
Trinitarian.  It  denies  the  divinity  of  Jesus,  and  of  the  Holy 
Ghost.  The  latter  is  for  Mrs.  Eddy  "divine  Science,  the  devel- 
opment of  eternal  life.  Truth  and  love."  ^  With  this  teach- 
ing disappear  the  very  foundations  of  the  Christian  re^ 
ligion.  It  is  all  the  more  surprising  that  Mrs.  Eddy  should 
maintain  against  the  Liberal  theologians  that  Jesus  was  born 
of  a  virgin. 

"The  illumination  of  Mary's  spiritual  sense  put  to  silence 
material  law  and  its  order  of  generation,  and  brought  forth 
her  child  by  the  revelation  of  Truth,  demonstrating  God  as 
the  Father  of  men.  The  Holy  Ghost,  or  divine  Spirit,  over- 
shadowed the  pure  sense  of  the  Virgin-Mother  with  the  full 
recognition  that  being  is  Spirit.  The  Christ  dwelt  forever  an 
ideal  in  the  bosom  of  God,  the  divine  Principle  of  the  man 

*"A11  gnostic  systems  are  based  on  a  kind  of  dualism  of  God  and 
matter.  But  with  the  Platonists  some  regarded  matter  as  unreal  and 
without  form,  while  others  supposed  it  to  be  ruled  by  an  evil  principle, 
and  hence  to  be  directly  opposed  and  hostile  to  God.  The  theogonic  and 
cosmogonic  process  was  explained  on  the  principle  of  an  emanation,  by 
which  from  the  hidden  God  a  long  series  of  Divine  formations  or  aeons 
had  emanated,  whose  indwelling  divine  potency  diminished  in  measure  as 
they  removed  from  the  original  divine  source."  Kurtz:  Church  History 
(Philadelphia,  1878),  Vol.  I,  p.  96. 

^Science  and  Health,  pp.  473,  583,  589. 

*Ibid.,  p.  588. 


The  Religious  Tenets  177 

Jesus;  and  woman  perceived  this  spiritual  idea,  though  at 
first  faintly  developed  in  infant  form.  .  .  .  Jesus  was  the 
offspring  of  Mary's  self-conscious  communion  with  God."  ^ 

This  quotation,  while  it  proves  that  Mrs.  Eddy  maintained 
the  Virgin-Birth,  proves  at  the  same  time  that  she  did  so  in  a 
manner  quite  out  of  keeping  with  orthodoxy.  In  this  fact  she 
believed  she  saw  a  confirmation  of  her  theory  of  the  immaterial- 
ity of  things.  Also  did  she  teach  this  Virgin-Birth  not  as  a 
unique  privilege,  but  as  something  which  will  become  the  rule 
as  soon  as  men  are  suflSciently  spiritual  no  longer  to  believe  at 
all  in  the  reality  of  matter.  Mrs.  Eddy  loved  to  dwell  on 
this  idea.  It  was  taught  in  her  college,  and  expounded  in  her 
writings  and  private  conversations.  To  find  a  basis  for  the 
act  of  generation  in  God,  she  transferred  the  ideas  of  both 
fatherhood  and  motherhood  to  Him,  and  loved  to  speak  of 
Him  as  "our  Father-Mother  God."  ^ 

No  system  that  remains  Christian,  even  in  name  only,  can 
neglect  to  treat  of  the  fundamental  mystery  of  Redemption  or 
the  Atonement,  be  it  even  merely  to  repudiate  it.  In  this  sense 
Mrs.  Eddy  acknowledges  "Jesus'  atonement  as  the  evidence  of 
divine,  efficacious  Love,  unfolding  man's  unity  with  God  through 
Christ  Jesus,  the  Way-shower."  ^  To  keep  the  time-honored 
word  of  the  Christian  dogma,  to  empty  it  of  its  consecrated 
meaning,  and  to  give  it  a  new  significance  at  variance  with 
the  traditional  belief  is  a  favorite  method  of  Liberal  and  Mod- 
ernistic theologians.  Mrs.  Eddy  is  thoroughly  modern  in  this 
respect.  By  acknowledging  the  atonement  as  an  evidence  of 
Love,  and  as  unfolding  man's  unity  with  God  through  Christ 
Jesus,  she  implicitly  rejects  the  Christian  dogma  of  Christ's 
vicarious  death,  for  our  sins.  Mrs.  Eddy  consecrates  a  whole 
chapter  to  atonement  and  Eucharist.  She  puts  down  many  a 
beautiful  thought  on  Christ's  sufferings,  but  the  general  trend 
of  her  teaching  is  this,  that  Christ  by  suffering  and  apparently 
dying  has  become  to  us  an  example  of  how  to  overcome  the 
belief  of  suffering  and  how  to  "demonstrate"  over  death.    "Let 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  29. 

'  Ibid.,  p.  16.  , 

Ubid.,   p.   497.  ' ^ 


178  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

men  think  they  had  killed  the  body !  afterwards  He  would  show 
it  to  them  unchanged.  This  should  demonstrate  that  the  true 
man,  in  Christian  Science,  is  governed  by  God,  by  good,  not 
evil,  and  is  therefore  not  a  mortal,  but  an  immortal."  ^  Else- 
where Mrs.  Eddy  puts  this  more  plainly  when  she  said  that 
the  crucifixion  of  Jesus  and  his  resurrection  served  to  elevate 
faith  and  understanding  to  perceive  eternal  Life — the  allness 
of  Spirit  and  the  nothingness  of  matter.*'  ^ 

A  further  consequence  of  this  teaching  is  that  all  the  sacra- 
ments are  given  up.  While  the  earlier  Protestants  kept  two 
or  three,  Christian  Science  and  New  Thought  reject  them  all 
and  take  special  pains  to  explain  away  the  deep  spiritual  signifi- 
cance of  Baptism  and  the  Eucharist. 

"Our  baptism,"  writes  Mrs.  Eddy,  "is  a  purification  from 
all  error.  Our  Church  is  built  on  the  divine  Principle,  Love. 
We  can  unite  with  this  Church  only  as  we  are  newborn  of 
Spirit,  as  we  reach  the  Life  which  is  Truth  and  the  Truth 
which  is  Life,  by  bringing  forth  the  fruits  of  Love — casting 
out  error  and  healing  the  sick."  ^ 

In  a  similar  manner  the  Holy  Eucharist  is  spirited  away: 

"Our  Eucharist  is  spiritual  communion  with  the  one  God. 
Our  bread  Vhich  cometh  down  from  Heaven'  is  Truth.  Our 
cup  is  the  cross ;  our  wine,  the  inspiration  of  Love — the 
draught  our  Master  drank  and  commended  to  His  followers. 
.  .  .  The  material  blood  of  Jesus  was  no  more  efficacious  to 
cleanse  from  sin  when  it  was  shed  upon  the  accursed  tree  than 
when  it  was  flowing  in  his  veins,  as  he  went -daily  about  his 
Father^s  business.  His  true  flesh  and  blood  were  His  Life; 
and  they  truly  eat  his  flesh  and  drink  his  blood  who  partake 
of  the  divine  Life."  * 

Thus  the  issue  is  clearly  drawn  between  Christ  and  Christian 
Science,  between  the  plain   and   obvious   meaning  of   Christ's 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  42. 

Ubid.,  p.  497. 

^Ibid.,  p.  35. 

*Ibid.  Cf.  also  Church  Manual,  Art.  XVIII,  sect.  1:  "The  Mother 
Church  of  Christ,  Scientist,  shall  observe  no  more  communion  seasons." 
Sect.  2:  "The  Communion  shall  be  observed  in  the  branch  churches  on 
the  second  Sunday  in  January  and  July  of  each  year,  and  at  this  service 
the  Tenets  of  The  Mother  Church  are  to  be  read." 


The  Religioiis  Tenets  179 

words  and  the  so-called  spiritual  interpretations  of  Christian 
Science.  It  would  be  useless  to  attempt  a  direct  refutation  of 
these  views;  for  as  long  as  any  one  can  claim  the  right  to 
put  his  own  meaning  into  somebody  else's  words,  it  is  useless 
to  argue  about  the  meaning  intended  by  the  author.  We  shall, 
therefore,  proceed  to  illustrate  Mrs.  Eddy's  concept  of  salva- 
tion. 

"We  acknowledge  that  man  is  saved  through  Christ, 
through  Truth,  Life  and  Love,  as  demonstrated  by  the  Galilean 
Prophet  in  the  healing  of  the  sick  and  the  overcoming  of  sin 
and  death."  ^ 

Purposely  ambiguous  like  the  rest,  these  words  of  Mrs. 
Eddy  might  be  interpreted  in  a  sense  not  too  far  apart  from 
the  teaching  of  the  Church.  But  in  the  light  of  Mrs.  Eddy's 
teaching  they  implicitly  deny  the  most  fundamental  truths  of 
Christianity.  For,  to  begin  with,  Christ  here  does  not  mean 
the  man  Jesus,  but  the  divine  Principle  which  is  variously 
styled  Truth,  Life  or  Love  or  all  three  combined.  Delete  the 
word  Christ  from  this  proposition  and  you  have  lost  nothing 
of  Mrs.  Eddy's  meaning;  on  the  contrary,  it  becomes  clearer 
and  a  good  deal  more  candid.  Mrs.  Eddy  undoubtedly  means 
this :  "We  acknowledge  that  man  is  saved  through  Truth,  Life 
and  Love."  These  principles  of  life,  according  to  the  modem 
mind  healers,  were  demonstrated  or  exemplified  by  the  Galilean 
Prophet,  not  in  His  teaching.  His  life,  his  prayers.  His  suffer- 
ings, but  in  the  "healing  of  the  sick,  and  the  overcoming  of  sin 
and  death."  Once  again  Jesus  is  only  the  Way-shower  to  Christ 
or  Christian  Science,  that  is,  to  Truth,  Life  and  Love. 

"Man  is  saved  through  Christ."  When  we  speak  of  salva- 
tion, we  generally  mean  future  and  eternal  salvation.  Nothing 
would  be  farther  from  the  mind  of  a  Christian  Scientist:  for 
him  salvation  means  primarily  and  exclusively  salvation  from 
sin,  sickness  and  death,  as  he  understands  these.  Salvation 
is  merely  a  getting  rid  of  some  erroneous  beliefs  in  the  present 
life.  The  future  interests  them  very  little.  As  there  is  no  future 
hell  to  be  feared,  and  therefore  no  future  evil  from  which  man 
must  be  saved,  so,  in  the  opinions  of  Christian  Scientists,  a 
^  Science   and  Health,   p.   497. 


180  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

future  heaven  holds  out  very  little  attraction.  It  adds  nothing 
to  the  happiness  of  a  Christian  Scientist;  it  is  merely  the 
present  life  continued  in  a  different  sphere.  For  this  reason  the 
Christian  Scientist  focuses  all  his  attention  on  the  present  life. 
Says  Mrs.  Eddy: 

"  'Now,'  cried  the  apostle,  'is  the  acceptable  time;  behold, 
now,  is  the  day  of  salvation,' — meaning  thereby,  not  that  men 
must  now  prepare  for  a  future  world-salvation  or  safety,  but 
that  now  is  the  time  in  which  to  experience  that  salvation 
in  spirit  and  life.  Now  is  the  time  for  so-called  material 
pains  and  material  pleasures  to  pass  away ;  for  both  are  un- 
real, because  impossible  in  Science.  To  break  this  earthly 
spell,  mortals  must  get  the  true  idea  and  divine  Principle  of 
all  that  really  exists  and  governs  the  universe  harmoniously. 
This  thought  is  apprehended  slowly :  and  the  interval  between 
its  attainment  is  attended  with  doubts  and  defeats  as  well 
as  triumphs." 

These  are  some  of  the  more  common  religious  affirmations 
and  negations  which  Christian  Science  and  New  Thought  have 
accepted.  We  should,  however,  labor  under  an  erroneous  be- 
lief, were  we  to  hold  that  all  Christian  Scientists  and  all  fol- 
lowers of  the  New  Thought  movement  are  united  in  a  common 
profession  of  faith.  Perhaps  nowhere  can  the  fact  of  the 
multiplicity  of  error  in  opposition  to  the  unity  of  Truth  be 
better  demonstrated  than  in  this  pretended  rediscovery  of 
original  Christianity.  What  one  affirms,  the  other  denies,  and 
yet  all  claim  to  be  the  very  mouthpiece  of  Truth.  Mr.  Charles 
Fillmore  presents  us  with  a  sketch  of  the  intellectual  confusion 
which  reigns  supreme  among  the  followers  of  the  new  move- 
ments. He  himself  glories  in  this  state  of  absolute  individualism 
and  mental  isolation : 

"This,  then,  is  really  the  foundation  of  the  New  Thought 
movement,"  says  he,  "that  its  adherents  shall  each  and  all  be 
priest  and  prophet  and  stand  alone  with  the  inner  Wisdom 
as  sole  guide  in  matters  religious.  But  not  all  are  living  up 
to  this  free  doctrine.  There  are  leaders  many,  and  schools 
separating  their  followers  into  limitations  of  various  degrees. 
These  are  the  natural  divisions  of  the  inner  thought  planes 


The  ReligtoTis  Tenets  181 

finding  expression  without,  and  are,  in  a  measure,  necessary 
in  the  present  race  development. 

"There  are  those  in  New  Thought  who  are  seeking  to 
carry  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven  their  earthly  possessions. 
They  are  trying  to  use  the  newly  discovered  powers  of  the 
mind  to  bring  up  humanity  on  the  old  foundations.  They 
proclaim  the  universality  of  the  one  Life  and  Intelligence, 
and  that  all  necessary  resting  upon  God  must  be  good.  .    .    . 

"What  may  be  termed  the  'Mental  Science'  school  holds 
that  God  is  not  a  being  of  Love  and  Wisdom,  but  a  force  of 
attraction.  They  repudiate  the  Loving  Father  proclaimed 
by  Jesus  Christ,  and  hold  that  man  is  the  highest  form  of 
self-consciousness  in  the  universe.   .  .   . 

"There  is  another  class  of  New  Thought  people  who  ac- 
cept Christianity  in  its  true  sense,  and  try  to  live  up  to  the 
teachings  of  Jesus  Christ.   .   .   . 

"There  are  a  number  of  schools,  passing  under  the  gen- 
eral name  of  New  Thought,  that  adhere  to  this  Christian 
interpretation,  yet  even  among  them  there  are  minor  differ- 
ences. Each  teacher  tinges  with  his  mental  bias  the  philoso- 
phy he  promulgates.  Not  one  seems  yet  to  have  attained 
that  place  where  the  revelation  from  the  Spirit  of  Truth, 
promised  by  Jesus  to  his  followers,  is  wholly  transparent. 
For  this  reason  disciples  are  never  safe  in  accepting  the 
teachings  of  any  school  as  final,  or  as  having  the  unadulter- 
ated truth."  1 

These  words  show  in  what  helpless  confusion  the  New 
Thought  movement  already  finds  itself  intellectually.  By  mak- 
ing her  system  an  autocracy,  Mrs.  Eddy  succeeded  in  keeping 
it  better  united,  but  here  also  there  are  many  signs  of  disunion. 
In  neither  case  is  the  doctrinal  basis  held  to  be  of  any  great 
importance;  for  them  all  practice  is  the  supreme  test  of  truth. 

*  Fillmore:  The  Science  of  Being  (Kansas  City,  1912),  pp.  250-252. 


CHAPTER  XII 


ON  PRAYER 


The  most  common  view,  entertained  by  the  people  about 
Christian  Scientists,  represents  them  as  men,  or  rather  as  mostly 
women,  who  abhor  the  regular  physician,  who  deny  all  heal- 
ing power  to  drugs,  who  renounce,  theoretically  only,  hygiene, 
and  who  cure,  or  hope  to  cure,  all  bodily  ills  by  means  of  prayer. 
Now  if  this  is  true,  if  Christian  Science  can  be  credited  with 
fostering  the  spirit  of  prayer,  it  deserves  in  this  respect  un- 
stinted praise,  no  matter  what  objections  can  be  raised  against 
it  on  other  grounds.  The  chapter  on  prayer  now  heads  all 
others  in  the  textbook,  and  its  very  first  sentences  lend  color 
to  the  popular  belief  that  nothing  in  Christian  Science  is  more 
important  than  prayer. 

"Regardless  of  what  another  may  say  or  think  on  this 
subject,  I  speak  from  experience.  Prayer,  watching  and 
working,  combined  with  self-immolation,  are  God^s  gracious 
means  for  accomplishing  whatever  has  been  done  successfully 
for  the  christianization  and  health  of  mankind."  ^ 

This  value  judgment  on  the  importance  of  these  acts  in  life 
deserves  recognition;  for  as  far  at  least  as  the  spiritual  life 
is  concerned,  it  is  wellnigh  perfect  and  would  deserve  the  high- 
est commendation,  were  it  not  for  the  explanations  that  follow. 
As  we  read  on,  we  are  forcibly  reminded  of  the  Pharisee  and 
the  Publican.  The  Pharisee  thanked  God  that  he  was  not  like 
the  rest  of  men;  but  the  Publican,  "standing  afar  off,  would 
not  so  much  as  lift  up  his  eyes  towards  heaven,  but  struck 
his  breast,  saying,  *0  God,  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner.'  "    And 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  1. 

182 


On  Prayer  18S 

Jesus  adds:  "I  say  to  you,  this  man  went  down  into  his  house 
justified  rather  than  the  other."  ^ 

According  to  Mrs.  Eddy  the  Publican  was  entirely  wrong  to 
pray  the  way  he  did,  and  the  Pharisee,  to  say  the  least,  was 
much  more  nearly  right.    For 

**prayer  is  not  to  be  used  as  a  confessional  to  cancel  sin. 
This  error  would  impede  true  religion.  Sin  is  forgiven  only, 
as  it  is  destroyed  by  Christ,  (that  means)  Truth  and  Life. 
//  prayer  nourished  the  belief  that  sin  is  canceled,  and  that 
man  is  made  better  by  merely  praying,  it  is  an  evil.  .  .  . 
Temptation  bids  us  repeat  the  offence,  and  woe  comes  in  re- 
turn for  what  is  done.  So  it  will  ever  be  till  we  learn  that 
there  is  no  discount  in  the  law  of  justice,  and  that  we  must 
pay  the  'uttermost  farthing.'  .  .  .  To  suppose  that  God  for- 
gives or  punishes  sin,  according  as  His  mercy  is  sought  or 
unsought,  is  to  misunderstand  Love,  and  make  prayer  the 
safety-valve  for  wrong-doing.  .  .  .  Do  you  ask  Wisdom 
(that  is,  God)  to  be  merciful  and  not  punish  sin?  Then,  ye 
ask  amiss.     Without  punishment  sin  would  multiply."  ^ 

Now  plainly,  Mrs.  Eddy  little  understands  the  Christian 
teaching  concerning  sin  and  forgiveness.  To  ask  God's  for- 
giveness for  our  sins  in  her  view  is  an  evil.  "Calling  on  him," 
she  says,  "to  forgive  our  work,  badly  done  or  left  undone,  im- 
plies the  vain  supposition  that  we  have  nothing  to  do  but  to  ask 
pardon,  and  that  afterwards  we  shall  be  free  to  repeat  the 
offense."  ^  Mrs.  Eddy  could  hardly  have  made  this  statement 
in  good  faith.  She  ought  to  have  known  that  forgiveness  is  not 
a  dispensation  to  commit  sin.  This  may  have  been  dinned  into 
her  ears  as  part  of  a  standard  vilification  of  the  Confessional, 
but,  surely,  it  was  never  the  Church's  teaching.  Forgiveness  is 
a  pardon  granted  only  to  those  who,  in  all  sincerity,  return  to 
their  Maker  and  are  fully  determined  to  keep  His  holy  law.' 
Nor  does  it  ordinarily  mean  a  full  remission  of  all  the  punish- 
ment due  to  sin.  While  the  eternal  punishment  of  hell  fire  is  al- 
ways remitted  with  the  guilt,  temporal  punishments,  flowing 

^Luke  18:10-14. 

'Science  and  Health,  pp.  20,  6,  10. 

•  Ibid.,  p.  6. 


184  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

from,  or  due  to,  sin — the  only  kind  that  Mrs.  Eddy  can  ac- 
knowledge— are  not  as  a  rule  entirely  remitted  along  with  the 
guilt. 

What,  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  mind,  does  forgiveness  consist  in? 
It  consists  not  only  in  giving  up  sinning,  but  also  in  overcoming 
evil  habits  that  have  resulted  from  former  sins,  and  even  in 
conquering  concupiscence  which  is  partly  natural,  and  partly  a 
consequence  of  original  sin  and  an  inherited  disposition.  Though 
Mrs.  Eddy  does  not  express  her  mind  very  clearly,  there  can  be 
little  doubt  that  she  labored  under  the  error  of  the  Reformers 
that  human  nature  is  totally  corrupt,  and  that  concupiscence 
and  every  evil  habit  is  sinful.  Now,  sin  does  not  consist  in  a 
habit,  but  in  an  act,  a  deliberate,  willful,  lawless  act,  and  it  is 
for  such  sinful  acts,  that  God's  forgiveness  must  be  sought,  a 
forgiveness  which  can  be  obtained  only  by  such  as  are  truly 
penitent  and  resolved  to  renounce  their  evil  ways.  Correcting 
evil  habits  is  something  quite  different  from  obtaining  forgive- 
ness; but  for  both  the  one  and  the  other  prayer  must  be  pro- 
nounced of  the  highest  utility  and  necessity.  "Ask,  and  it  shall 
be  given  you;  seek,  and  you  shall  find;  knock,  and  it  shall  be 
opened  to  you."  ^ 

In  the  light  of  this  and  many  similar  Scriptural  statements, 
weigh  the  following  statements  of  the  "new"  revelation: 

"God  is  Love ;  can  we  ask  Him  to  be  more  ?  God  is  Intel- 
ligence. Can  we  inform  the  Infinite  Mind  or  tell  Him  any- 
thing He  does  not  already  comprehend?  Do  we  hope  to 
change  perfection?  Shall  we  plead  for  more  at  the  open 
fount  which  always  pours  forth  more  than  we  receive?  .  .  . 
Asking  God  to  be  God  is  a  vain  repetition.  God  is  the  same 
yesterday,  today  and  forever,  and  He  who  is  immutably  right, 
will  do  right  without  being  reminded  of  His  province.  The 
wisdom  of  man  is  not  sufficient  to  warrant  him  in  advising 
God.  .  .  .  How  empty  are  our  conceptions  of  Deity!  We 
admit  theoretically  that  God  is  good,  omnipotent,  omni- 
present, infinite,  and,  then,  we  try  to  give  information  to  this 
infinite  Mind,  and  plead  for  unmerited  pardon  and  a  liberal 
outpouring  of  benefactions.  .  .  ."  ^ 

*Matt.  7:7. 

^Science  and  Health,  pp.  2-3. 


On  Prayer  185 

Thus  the  founder  of  a  new  religion  has  succeeded  in  com- 
pressing into  a  small  compass,  and  making  her  own,  century- 
old  objections  raised  in  the  first  place  by  rationalists  whose 
only  object  was  precisely  to  raise  objections  and  create  diffi- 
culties in  the  way  of  belief,  little  interested  themselves,  if  at 
all,  in  the  solution  of  them.  No  other  answer  is  required  than 
the  clear  teaching  of  the  Bible  which  Mrs.  Eddy  despite  her 
textbook  continued  to  accept  "as  our  sufficient  guide  to  eternal 
Life."  ^  It  may  be  proper,  none  tlie  less,  to  point  out  here, 
without  transgressing  the  limits  imposed  on  us,  some  of  Mrs. 
Eddy's  unwarranted  assumptions.  She  assumes  that  we  pray 
to  inform  God  of  our  needs,  when,  in  point  of  fact,  we  pray 
because  we  have  been  ordered  to  do  so  by  God  Himself,  who, 
thus,  requires  us  to  prepare  ourselves  for  a  more  abundant  out- 
pouring of  divine  gifts  by  cooperating  with  His  eternal  designs. 
She  assumes  that  the  granting  of  our  petitions  is  conditioned 
on  a  change  in  the  Divine  Will,  when,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  from 
all  eternity  the  granting  of  certain  favors  has  been  made  de- 
pendent on  prayer.  She  assumes  that  because  God  can  give 
all  and  more  than  we  need,  He  actually  does  so  without  our 
asking  for  anything,  when  daily  experience  proves  the  con- 
trary. She  becomes  ludicrous,  almost  profane,  when  she  as- 
sumes that  prayers  are  for  the  purpose  of  reminding  God  of 
His  duty,  "of  His  province." 

How  easy  it  is  to  retort  to  Mrs.  Eddy's  rhetorical  questions 
by  an  equal  number  of  queries,  similar  in  appearance,  but  more 
solid  in  contents,  addressed  now  to  Mrs.  Eddy. 

"God  is  our  Lord  and  Master.  Can  we  lay  down  laws 
for  Him?  God  is  Intelligence.  Can  we  inform  the  Infinite 
Mind  concerning  the  best  ways  of  salvation?  How  can  we 
presume  that  we  know  so  perfectly  the  ways  of  Divine  Provi- 
dence as  to  be  able  to  proclaim  without  hesitation  that  the 
granting  of  favors  as  a  result  of  prayers  must  mean  a  change 
in  the  Divine  Will?  Is  God  at  the  mercy  of  his  creatures,  so 
that  He  is  bound  to  pour  out  His  blessings  upon  them,  even 
when  they  refuse  to  accept  them  ?  Can  he  not  bestow  greater 
favors  on  a  saint  that  prays  than  on  a  sinner  that  scofi^s? 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  497. 


186  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Are  not  those  dispositions  that  are  essential  to  prayer,  and 
the  acts,  which  it  necessitates,  absolute  requirements  in  the 
designs  of  the  Divine  Providence  for  the  improvement  and 
salvation  of  mankind?  We  admit  theoretically  that  God  is 
good,  omnipotent,  omnipresent,  infinite,  and  then  we  try  to 
bring  Him  down  to  the  level  of  our  puny  intellect  and  to  ap-  j 
ply  to  Him  the  measure  of  our  human  prejudices  and  self-  \ 
conceit." 

This  accumulation  of  questions  goes  to  show  how  easy  the 
game  of  raising  objections  in  the  form  of  question  marks, 
quietly  assuming  from  the  start  that  they  all  must  be  answered 
in  the  sense  that  is  uppermost  in  the  mind  of  the  questioner. 

Mrs.  Eddy  is  not  satisfied  with  claiming  that  a  prayer  of 
petition  is  powerless,  she  maintains  that  it  is  injurious :  it  does 
not,  in  her  opinion,  make  man  better,  it  makes  him  worse; 
for  it  is  a  belief,  an  error,  an  illusion,  which,  if  it  benefits 
momentarily,  will  in  the  end  do  harm. 

"The  habit,"  she  says,  "of  pleading  with  the  Divine  Mind, 
as  one  pleads  with  a  human  being,  perpetuates  the  belief  in 
God  as  humanly  circumscribed — an  error  which  impedes 
spiritual  growth.  ...  A  mere  request  that  God  will  heal 
the  sick  has  no  power  to  gain  more  of  the  Divine  Presence 
than  is  always  at  hand.  The  beneficial  effect  of  such  prayer 
for  the  sick  is  on  the  human  mind,  making  it  act  more  power- 
fully on  the  body  through  a  blind  faith  in  God.  This,  how- 
ever, is  one  belief  casting  out  another, — a  belief  in  the  un- 
known casting  out  a  belief  in  sickness.  .  .  .  Prayer  to  a  cor- 
poreal God  affects  the  sick  like  a  drug,  having  no  efficacy  of 
its  own,  but  borrowing  its  power  from  human  faith  and  be- 
lief. The  drug  does  nothing  because  it  has  no  intelligence. 
It  is  mortal  belief,  not  divine  Principle  or  Love  which  causes 
a  drug  to  be  apparently  either  poisonous  or  sanative.  .  .  . 
This  common  form  of  praying  for  the  recovery  of  the  sick 
finds  help  in  blind  belief ;  whereas  help  should  come  from  the 
enlightened  understanding."  -^ 

These  words  are  cunningly  calculated  to  undermine  the 
experiential  proof  which  all  praying  people  have  of  the  efficacy 

*  Scitnce  and  Health,  p.  12. 


On  Frayer  187 

of  prayer  and  of  the  Divine  help  it  obtains.  Not  God,  but 
nature  is  responsible  for  its  results ;  it  is  not  even  God  through 
nature,  but  simply  nature  based  on  error,  on  a  kind  of  hallu- 
cination or  self-delusion.  Thus,  the  rejection  of  the  plain  evi- 
dence of  daily  religious  experience  is  demanded  of  the  Christian 
Scientist  on  no  other  warrant  than  that  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  un- 
supported word  alone.  As  this,  however,  cannot  outweigh  the 
clear  teaching  of  Christ  and  of  His  Church,  we  may  dismiss 
the  subject  without  further  comment. 

But  we  have  not  done  as  yet  with  the  analysis  of  Mrs. 
Eddy's  destructive  theories.  If  she  rejects  all  prayer  of  peti- 
tion and  propitiation,  she  particularly  execrates  audible  and 
public  prayers. 

"Audible  prayer  is  impressive,"  she  says,  "it  gives  mo- 
mentary solemnity  and  elevation  to  thought ;  but  does  it  pro- 
duce any  lasting  benefit?  Looking  deeply  into  these  things, 
we  find  that  'a  zeal  .  .  .  not  according  to  knowledge'  gives 
occasion  for  reaction  unfavorable  to  spiritual  growth,  sober 
resolve,  and  wholesome  perception  of  God's  requirements.  The 
motives  for  verbal  prayer  may  embrace  too  much  love  of  ap- 
plause to  induce  or  encourage  Christian  sentiment.  .  .  .  The 
danger  from  audible  prayer  is,  that  it  may  lead  us  into  temp- 
tation. By  it  we  may  become  involuntary  hypocrites,  utter- 
ing desires  which  are  not  real,  and  consoling  ourselves  in  the 
midst  of  sin,  with  the  recollection  that  we  have  prayed  over 
it, — or  mean  to  ask  forgiveness  at  some  later  date.  Hypoc- 
risy is  fatal  to  religion.  ...  A  wordy  prayer  may  afford  a 
quiet  sense  of  self -justification,  though  it  makes  the  sinner  a 
hypocrite.  .   .  ?■ 

"In  public  prayer  we  often  go  beyond  our  convictions, 
beyond  the  honest  standpoint  of  fervent  desire.  If  we  are 
not  secretly  yearning  and  openly  striving  for  the  accomplish- 
ment of  all  we  ask,  our  prayers  are  vam  repetitions,  such  as 
the  heathen  use.  .  .  .  Can  the  mere  public  expression  of  our 
desires  increase  them }  Do  we  gain  the  omnipotent  ear  sooner 
by  words  than  by  thoughts  ?  Even  if  prayer  is  sincere,  God 
knows  our  needs,  before  we  tell  Him  or  our  fellow-beings 
about  it."  2 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  7. 
'Ibid.,  p.  13. 


188  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

In  the  midst  of  much  that  we  must  reject,  we  find  here  some 
sentiments  that  we  must  applaud.  Hypocrisy  is  undoubtedly 
fatal  to  religion ;  religion  is  too  much  an  affair  of  the  exterior, 
for  some ;  by  prayer  some  of  us  "may  become  involuntary  hypo- 
crites, uttering  desires  which  are  not  real  and  consoling  our- 
selves in  the  midst  of  sin."  If  the  charge  "that  verbal  prayer 
may  embrace  too  much  love  of  applause"  is  true,  it  can  apply 
only  to  the  Protestant  practice  of  formulating  new  prayers 
at  every  new  service,  not  to  the  public  prayers  of  the  Catholic 
Church.  These  observations  are  not  without  foundation  and 
would,  indeed,  be  praiseworthy  but  for  the  spirit  in  which  they 
were  made.  For  Mrs.  Eddy  uses  these  strictures  not  as  an 
argument  to  lead  men  to  put  their  heart  and  soul  into  prayer, 
but  as  a  weapon  of  offense  against  prayer  itself.  But  as  the 
abuse  of  anything  cannot  reprobate  its  proper  use,  so  abuses 
that  may  creep  into  public  prayers  do  not  vitiate  the  use  of 
public  prayer  when  resorted  to  for  mutual  edification  and  social 
worship.  Why,  forsooth,  should  Mrs.  Eddy  worry  about  audible 
prayer?  If  her  theories  are  true,  and  matter  does  not  exist,  or 
exists  only  in  belief,  audible  prayers  do  not  take  place,  since 
they  evidently  presuppose  material  organs  and  a  material  sur- 
rounding. 

II 

Prayer  in  Christian  Science  seemingly  is  neither  for  the 
asking  of  forgiveness  nor  for  the  obtaining  of  favors.  No 
mention  is  made  of  prayer  of  adoration,  and  although  thanks- 
giving is  mentioned,  it  is  practically  restricted  to  a  grateful 
behavior.  "Are  we  really  grateful  for  the  good  already  re- 
ceived? Then  we  shall  avail  ourselves  of  the  blessings  we  havej 
and  thus  be  fitted  to  receive  more.  Gratitude  is  much  more  than 
a  verbal  expression  of  thanks.  Action  expresses  more  gratitude 
than  speech."  ^  What,  then,  does  prayer  really  mean  in  Chris- 
tian Science?  Is  all  prayer  of  petition  absolutely  excluded? 
The  answer  lies  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  definition  of  prayer:  "Consistent 
prayer  is  the  desire  to  do  right.     Prayer  means  that  we  desire 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  3. 


On  Prayer  189 

to,  and  will,  walk  in  the  light  so  far  as  we  receive  it,  even  though 
with  bleeding  footsteps,  and  waiting  patiently  on  the  Lord,  will 
leave  our  real  desires  to  be  rewarded  by  Him."  ^  Such  a  prayer 
God  will  hear. 

Mrs.  Eddy  chiefly  objects,  and  rightly  so,  to  mere  "lip- 
service,"  but  she  teaches  that  the  right  kind  of  desires  are  a 
most  efixcient  prayer;  "Prayer,  coupled  with  a  fervent  habitual 
desire  to  know  and  do  the  will  of  God  will  bring  us  into  all 
truth.  Such  a  desire  has  little  need  of  audible  expression.  It 
is  best  expressed  in  thought  and  life."  ^  While  thus  insisting 
strongly  on  the  sincerity  of  prayer,  even  to  the  extent  of  pro- 
nouncing audible  prayer  useless,  Mrs.  Eddy  does  not  neglect  to 
point  out  a  fitting  object  for  our  prayer:  "What  we  most  need 
is  the  prayer  of  fervent  desire  for  growth  in  grace,  expressed 
in  patience,  meekness,  love  and  good  deeds."  ^ 

There  may  be  nothing  new  in  all  this,  but  we  are  glad  to 
find  it  in  Science  and  Health.  What  we  criticize  is  not  this 
strong  insistence  on  the  necessity  of  sincerely  desiring  what 
we  ask  for,  but  the  fact  that  prayer  is  completely  identified  with 
this  desire.  Does  it  not  appear  as  if  Mrs.  Eddy  looked  for  the 
effects  of  prayer  not  in  a  supernatural  assistance,  but  in  that 
gradual  mental  education  which  the  fostering  of  good  desires 
must  accomplish? 

This  explains  why  prayer  occupies  such  an  insignificant 
place  in  Christian  Science  Church  services.  The  order  of  ex- 
ercises— fourteen  in  number — that  constitute  the  service,  in- 
cludes the  singing  of  hymns,  the  reading  of  selections  from  the 
Bible  and  the  textbook,  which  is  followed  by  what  is  called 
silent  prayer.  After  the  audible  repetition  of  the  Lord's  prayer 
with  its  so-called  spiritual  interpretation,  another  hymn  is 
sung,  and  then  follow  in  regular  order  the  alternate  reading, 
by  the  First  Reader  and  the  congregation,  of  an  assigned  selec- 
tion from  Scripture ;  the  Lesson-Sermon,  consisting  of  the  read- 
ing of  extracts  from  the  Bible  and  the  so-called  correlative 
sections  from  Science  and  Health;  the  collection,  and,  finally, 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  9. 
^Ihid.,  p.  11. 
^Ihid.,  p.  4. 


190  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

what  is  called  the  scientific  statement  of  being,  with  its  cor- 
relative Scripture  text  taken  from  the  Gospel  according  to  St. 
John,  third  chapter,  verses  1-3. 

The  only  strictly  vocal  prayer  in  this  series  of  exercises 
is  the  Lord's  prayer  with  its  so-called  spiritual  interpretation. 
Even  Mrs.  Eddy  was  not  bold  enough  to  reject  this  prayer; 
but  she  caricatures  it.  Though  its  every  statement  is  plain 
enough  for  a  child  to  understand,  Mrs.  Eddy  interprets  it,  and 
such  an  interpretation!  It  has  varied  considerably  in  the 
course  of  time,  and  for  comparison  two  of  its  versions  are  here 
reproduced  in  parallel  columns. 


Edition  of  1881  Later  Editions 

1.  Principal,  Eternal  and  Our  Father-Mother  God,  all 
Harmonious.  harmonious. 

2.  Nameless  and  adorable  In-  Adorable  One. 
telligence. 

3.  Thou  art  ever  present  and  Thy  ikingdom  is  within  us ; 
supreme.  Thou  art  ever  present. 

4.  And  when  this  supremacy  Enable  us  to  know— as  in 
of  Spirit  shall  appear,  the  heaven,  so  on  earth — God  is 
dream  of  matter  will  dis-   supreme. 

appear. 

5.  Give  us  the  understanding  Give  us  grace  for  today ;  feed 
of  Truth  and  Love.  the  famished  affections. 

6.  And  loving  we  shall  learn  And  infinite  Love  is  reflected  in 
God,   and  Truth  will  de-  love. 

stroy  all  error. 

7.  And  lead  us  unto  the  Life  And  Love  leadeth  us  not  into 
that  is  Soul,  and  deliver  us   temptation,  but  delivereth  us 
from  the  errors  of  sense,   from  sin,  disease  and  death, 
sin,   sickness   and  death. 

For  God  is  Life,  Truth,  For  God  is  now  and  forever  all 
and  Love  forever.  Life,  Truth  and  Love. 

How  Mrs.  Eddy  must  have  labored  to  pervert  the  plain 
and  obvious  meaning  of  these  words,  so  beautiful  in  their  grand 
*Cf.  Science  and  Health,  p.  17;  Mark  Twain,  O'p.  cit,,  p.  305. 


On  'Prayer  191 

simplicity!  Four  of  the  petitions  have  been  changed  into 
affirmations;  the  reference  to  the  Divine  Will,  in  which  Mrs. 
Eddy  does  not  believe,  and  to  obedience  to  it  has  been  dropped. 
The  word  bread  which  sounded  too  material  has  been  replaced 
by  a  reference  to  grace  and  famished  affections,  and,  finally, 
the  change  that  shocks  most  of  all,  is  the  change  of  "Our 
Father"  into  "Our  Father-Mother  God,"  and  of  the  reference 
to  Heaven  as  His  abode  into  the  adjective  "all  harmonious." 

Christian  Science,  it  is  now  evident,  is  far  from  being  es- 
sentially an  association  of  prayer  for  the  improvement  of 
the  human  race. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

ETHICS  OF  THE  MODERN  MIND-MOVEMENTS 


The  pragmatism  of  our  days  professes  to  put  all  things 
through  the  crucible  of  experience.  It  transfers  to  all  fields 
of  human  life  and  endeavor  the  methods  of  research  and  ex- 
perimentation which  have  proved  so  valuable  in  the  laboratory. 
It  has  invaded  the  field  of  ethics  and  gives  as  the  supreme 
norm  of  good  and  evil  the  rule  that  whatever  works  out  well 
in  practice,  is  true  and  good.  Mrs.  Eddy  has  appealed  to  this 
principle  as  the  test  of  the  truth  of  what  she  says.  She  points 
to  the  record  of  Christian  Science  at  the  sickbed,  and  boldly 
demands  the  application,  in  her  case,  of  the  Master's  word: 
"By  their  fruits  you  shall  know  them."  The  opponents  of 
Christian  Science,  on  the  other  hand,  accept  the  challenge,  but 
apply  the  test  not  exclusively  to  the  sickchamber,  but  to  all  the 
intellectual  and  moral  aspects  of  this  new  religion. 

The  pragmatism  of  the  modern  mind-healing  places  the  em- 
phasis on  the  wrong  values  of  life.  They  assign  to  bodily 
health  absolutely  the  highest  place.  They  do  not  deny,  they 
do  even  insist  on,  the  necessity  of  a  moral  life,  but  their  final 
aim  and  object  is  bodily  health  and  bodily  comfort,  with  the 
practice  of  certain  virtues  thrown  in,  as  a  necessary  means 
towards  this  end.  A  palpable  paradox  stares  us  in  the  face; 
these  systems  deny  the  reality  of  disease,  and  yet,  make  the 
healing  of  disease  their  first  and  main  concern.  On  almost 
every  page  of  Science  and  Health  reappears  the  ghost  of  ill- 
health  to  exorcize  which  ever  remains  the  chief  purpose  of 
Christian  Science. 

Another  feature  of  these  cults,  to  which  a  Christian  will 
object,  is  the   fact   that  they  throw   together  in   a   common 

192 


Ethics  of  the  Modern  Mind-Movements  198 

class  evils  which  Christianity  has  constantly  kept  apart.  Sick- 
ness and  death  belong  together;  but  when  sin  is  grouped  with 
both,  as  though  they  all  belonged  to  the  same  order,  chaos 
is  introduced  into  Christian  ethics.  Sin  springs  from  a  will 
that  is  free  and  issues  into  a  state  that  is  called  guilt  and,  thus, 
occupies  an  absolutely  unique  position  in  human  life.  Physical 
ills,  on  the  contrary,  belong  directly  to  the  material,  and  only 
indirectly  to  the  spiritual  world.  The  consequence  is  that  the 
treatment  of  them,  if  the  term  be  allowed,  cannot  be  the  same 
for  both. 

Has  not  Christ  been  described  as  "the  man  of  sorrows," 
and  acquainted  with  infirmity,  wounded  for  our  iniquity,  and 
bruised  for  our  sins?  Is  it  not  stated  in  so  many  words  that 
"the  Lord  was  pleased  to  bruise  him  in  infirmity"  ?  ^  If  this 
is  so,  sickness  and  suffering  cannot  be  treated  as  absolutely  evil. 
Mrs.  Eddy  herself,  when  there  is  question  of  Christian  Science 
interests,  at  times  recognizes  this. 

"Who  that  has  felt  the  loss  of  human  peace  has  not 
gained  stronger  desires  for  spiritual  joy?  The  aspiration 
after  heavenly  good  comes  even  before  we  discover  what  be- 
longs to  Wisdom  and  Love.  The  loss  of  earthly  hopes  and 
pleasures  brightens  the  ascending  path  of  many  a  heart. 
The  pains  of  sense  quickly  inform  us  that  its  pleasures  are 
mortal,  and  that  joy  is  spiritual.  .  .  .  The  pains  of  sense 
are  salutary,  if  they  wrench  away  false  pleasureable  beliefs, 
and  transplant  the  affections  from  sense  to  Soul,  where  the 
creations  of  God  are  good,  'rejoicing  the  heart.'  Such  is  the 
sword  of  Science,  whereby  Truth  decapitates  error,  and  mor- 
tality gives  place  to  man's  higher  individuality  and  des- 
tiny." 2 

The  inconsistency  of  these  declarations  with  Mrs.  Eddy's 
fundamental  tenet,  that  physical  suffering  is  unreal  and  es- 
sentially evil,  need  not  be  pointed  out.  Christian  Science  is 
entirely  reared  on  the  supposition  that  sickness  is  an  unmiti- 
gated evil,  and  that  it  is  the  first  duty  of  every  Christian  Scien- 
tist to  root  it  up.     How  different  the  Christian  view,  which 

^Isaias  53:3,  10. 

^  Science  and  Health,  p.  265, 


194  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

represents  many  of  the  saints  as  winning  their  eternal  crown 
through  a  long  martyrdom  of  pains  and  penances !  The  Chris- 
tion  faith  looks  upon  physical  evil  as  a  means  of  grace,  of  ex- 
piation and  merit,  and,  consequently,  often  as  a  blessing  in  dis- 
guise, while  it  condemns  sin  as  the  only  unqualifiedly  real  evil. 
If,  then,  sickness  lingers  in  spite  of  doctor,  drug  and  prayer,  the 
patient's  mental  make-up  is  not  necessarily  at  fault,  as  the 
modem  mind-healer  must  consistently  assert,  for  sickness  and 
sorrow  undoubtedly  have  a  mission  to  fulfill  in  the  designs  of 
divine  Providence  for  the  spiritualization  of  man's  sensual  na- 
ture and  for  the  salvation  of  his  soul. 


That  Christian  Science  is  lowering  the  standard  of  morality 
by  its  peculiar  teaching  concerning  sin  is  beyond  dispute. 
Shall  we,  with  many  authors,  go  so  far  as  to  accuse  it  of 
antinomian  tendencies  ?     One  writer  says : 

"Christian  Science  teaches  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as 
sin.  Sin  has  no  reality.  Over  and  over  and  over  again  its 
non-existence  is  affirmed,  its  actuality  denied.  Well,  if  that 
be  true.  Christian  Science  teaches  that  you  can  commit  adul- 
tery, robbery,  murder  or  any  other  of  the  numerous  crimes. 
we  have  always  thought  to  be  sinful  and  not  be  guilty  of  sin 
at  all !  Whatever  these  iniquities  and  others  equally  heinous 
be,  they  are  not  sin.  Heaven  pity  us  if  our  intelligence  en- 
dorse such  ethics  as  truth."  ^ 

Another  one  writes: 

"On  this  theory  sin  is  only  a  bad  dream  and  all  we  need 
do  to  get  rid  of  it  is  to  stab  ourselves  broad  awake.  This 
doctrine  of  the  nothingness  of  matter  and  of  sin  is  of  ancient 
Gnostic  lineage  and  it  has  lost  none  of  its  antinomian  ten- 
dencies. It  is  allied  to  the  pantheistic  doctrine  of  illusion 
that  saturates  the  Orient  and  is  so  productive  of  immorality. 
This  denial  of  the  very  possibility  of  sin  logically  sweeps  away 
all  barriers  against  the  flesh  and  opens  the  gate  for  sensuality 

*  piederwolf :  The  Unvarnished  Facts  about  Christian  Science,  p.  29. 


Ethics  of  the  Modern  Mind^Movements  195 

to  flood  the  soul.  If  Christian  Scientists  do  not  give  way 
to  this  tendency,  it  is  because  they  are  better  than  their 
doctrine."  ^ 

Quotations  might  be  multiplied,  to  prove  these  contentions ; 
yet,  owing  to  Mrs.  Eddy's  peculiar  terminology,  such  quota- 
tions would  be  misquotations.  In  all  fairness  we  must  admit, 
that,  in  theory,  Mrs.  Eddy  does  not  directly  minimize  the  great 
evil  of  sin.  If  she  calls  it  an  unreality,  a  belief,  an  illusion,  she 
does  not  mean  that  sinful  acts  are  not  really  sinful,  but  that 
they  have  no  lasting  substance;  that  they  do  not  belong  to  the 
real  and  eternal  order  of  God's  Creation,  but  are  defects  in 
the  order  of  being;  they  have  no  existence  in  the  eternal 
Mind,  but  form  part  of  the  "mortal  mind,"  which,  in  the 
nature  of  things,  must  disappear  sooner  or  later  with  all  its 
contents.  For  Mrs.  Eddy,  both  sickness  and  sin  are  unreal 
in  the  peculiar  sense  which  Mrs.  Eddy  gives  to  this  word,  but 
they  are  superlatively  real  in  human  experience.  In  this  sense 
Mrs.  Eddy  says : 

"If  mortals  would  keep  proper  ward  over  mortal  mind, 
the  brood  of  evils,  which  infest  it,  could  be  cleared  out.  We 
must  begin  with  this  so-called  mind,  and  empty  it  of  sin  and 
sickness,  or  sin  and  sickness  will  never  cease.  The  present 
codes  of  human  systems  disappoint  the  weary  searcher  after 
a  divine  theology,  adequate  to  the  right  education  of  human 
thought.  Sin  is  thought  before  it  is  acted.  You  must  con- 
trol it  in  the  first  instance,  or  it  will  control  you  in  the 
second."  ^ 

Mrs.  Eddy  even  declares  that  the  cure  of  sin  is  harder  than 
the  cure  of  disease: 

"It  is  easier  to  cure  the  most  malignant  disease  than  it 
is  to  cure  sin.  The  author  has  raised  up  the  dying,  partly 
because  they  were  willing  to  be  restored;  while  she  has 
struggled  long,  and  perhaps  in  vain,  to  lift  a  student  out  of 
a  chronic  sin.  Under  all  modes  of  pathological  treatment, 
the  sick  recover  more  rapidly  from  disease  than  the  sinner 

^Snowden:  The  Truth  about  Christian  Science  (Philadelphia,  1920),  p.  29. 
^Science  and  Health,  p.  234. 


196  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

from  his  sin.   .    .    .   The  fear  of  disease  and  the  love  of  sin 
are  the  springs  of  man's  enslavement."  ^ 

How  sin  succeeds  by  degrees  in  enslaving  the  whole  man,  and 
then  rushes  him  on  to  his  punishment  is  at  times  graphically 
described  by  the  founder  of  Christian  Science. 

"The  belief  of  sin,"  she  writes,  "which  has  grown  terrible 
in  strength  and  influence,  is  an  unconscious  error  in  the  be- 
ginning,— an  embryonic  thought  without  motive;  but  after- 
wards it  governs  the  so-called  man.  Passion,  appetite,  dis- 
honesty, envy,  hatred,  and  revenge  ripen  into  action,  only  to 
pass  on  from  shame  and  woe  to  their  final  punishment."  " 

Here  it  may  also  be  recalled  that  Mrs.  Eddy  insists  on  the 
moral  regeneration  of  a  patient  as  a  prerequisite  for  a  final 
cure  of  his  physical  illness.  The  reason  given  by  her  is  that 
disease  often  grows  out  of  sin.  "The  soil  of  disease,"  she  says, 
"is  sinful  mortal  mind,  and  you  have  an  abundant  or  scanty 
crop,  according  to  the  seedlings  in  that  mind,  unless  they  are 
uprooted  and  cast  out."  ^ 

If  there  is  danger  of  antinomianism  in  Christian  Science, 
the  danger  lies  not,  therefore,  in  Mrs.  Eddy's  avowed  senti- 
ments regarding  sin,  but  in  her  disregard  of  the  sanctions  that 
God  has  attached  to  the  violation  of  the  Divine  Law.  The  fear 
of  the  Lord  has  been  entirely  eliminated.  "The  fear  of  the 
Lord  is  the  beginning  of  Wisdom,"  says  Holy  Writ;  for  the 
modern  healers'  fear  is  more  nearly  the  beginning  of  all  evil, 
for  from  fear  spring  evils  innumerable.  As  all  fears  must  be 
banished,  hell,  logically  enough,  must  be  ruled  out  of  existence, 
no  matter  what  the  Bible  teaches.  How  little,  after  all,  does 
Scripture  count  in  the  lives  and  thoughts  of  many  who  proclaim 
it  as  their  sufficient  and  only  guide  to  salvation!  Mrs.  Eddy 
does  not  so  much  as  take  the  trouble  of  disproving  the  existence 
of  hell;  she  everywhere  takes  its   non-existence  for  granted. 

^  Science  and  Health,  p.  373.  The  sin  of  which  Mrs.  Eddy  here  speaks  is 
Richard  Kennedy's  defection  from  her.  Whenever  Mrs.  Eddy  used  par- 
ticularly strong  language,  there  was  generally  a  personal  consideration  in 
the  matter. 

'  Ibid.,  p.  1S8. 

» Ibid.,  p.  188. 


E tides  of  the  Modern  Mind-Movements  197 

The  word  itself  receives  from  her  hands  a  singular  connotation ; 
hell  means  "mortal  belief,  error,  lust,  remorse,  hatred,  revenge, 
sin,  sickness,  death,  suffering  and  self-destruction,  self-imposed 
agony,  effects  of  sin,  and,  finally,  that  which  worketh  abomina- 
tion or  maketh  a  lie."  ^  Now  to  deny  the  existence  of  hell  is 
to  remove  one  of  the  safeguards  of  virtue.  It  is  a  matter  of 
common  experience  that  passions  are  not  overcome  by  the  mere 
knowledge  that  they  are  evil,  and,  despite  the  high-sounding 
praises  lavished  on  a  morality  with  virtue  as  its  own  reward, 
the  Bible  truth  still  remains  true  today,  that  "the  fear  of  the 
Lord  is  the  beginning  of  Wisdom." 

"The  belief  of  sin  is  punished  as  long  as  it  lasts,"  says  Mrs. 
Eddy.^  This  does  not  mean,  as  it  ordinarily  should,  that 
not  sin,  but  only  the  belief  in  sin  is  punished ;  that  not  sin,  but 
the  belief  in  sin  is  evil;  or  that  if  one  overcomes  the  belief  that 
such  or  such  an  action  is  sinful,  no  punishment  will  ensue. 
It  means  that  sin  which  is  a  "belief"  (in  Mrs.  Eddy^s  vocabu- 
lary) is  punished,  but  punished  only  as  long  as  that  belief 
lasts.  Nor  does  this  mean  that  the  punishment  ceases,  as  soon 
as  the  sinful  act  is  accomplished ;  for  Mrs.  Eddy,  sin  is  a  state 
or  lasting  disposition  rather  than  an  act.  Hence  it  follows 
that  the  punishment  is  commensurate  with  this  lasting  disposi- 
tion and  will  not  cease  until  this  disposition  has  been  done  away 
with. 

This  interpretation  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  mind  removes  still 
further  the  danger  of  antinomianism.  The  immoral  teaching 
often  ascribed  to  Mrs.  Eddy  does  not  flow  from  her  principles ; 
the  imputation  of  such  teaching  is  entirely  due  to  the  erroneous 
interpretation  given  to  her  words  by  critics.  Unfortunately 
her  words  lend  themselves  but  too  easily  to  such  an  interpreta- 
tion and  it  is  not  impossible  that  the  day  may  come  when  her 
words,  rather  than  her  meaning,  will  be  accepted  by  some  of 
her  followers.  Christian  Science  is  still  young,  its  members 
are  still  afire  with  the  zeal  of  neophytes,  still  enthusiastically 
devoted  to  the  mission  which  they  believe  it  possesses.  What 
is  best  in  it  is  brought  to  the  fore.     Will  it  be  so  in  fifty  or  a 

*  Science  and  Health,  p.  497.  ,» 

^Cf.  ibid.,  p.  35  fF. 


198  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

hundred  years  from  now  ?  Will  not  the  second  or  third  genera- 
tion of  Scientists  draw  from  Mrs.  Eddy's  premises  conclusions 
vastly  different  from  those  of  their  fathers? 

As  a  matter  of  history,  Mrs.  Eddy's  own  sense  of  sin  was 
none  of  the  strongest.  Hers  was  not  a  delicate  conscience. 
Her  most  violent  outbursts  against  sin  were  always  occasioned 
by  some  fancied  wrong  on  the  part  of  her  students  towards 
their  teacher  and  Leader. 

The  attempt  to  improve  on  her  teaching,  or  even  merely  to 
explain  it,  even  with  the  best  of  intentions,  was  one  of  the 
worst  crimes  that  could  be  committed;  to  become  disloyal  to 
the  Founder  or  the  Church, — an  offense  of  which  Mrs.  Eddy 
was  the  sole  judge — was  "immorality."  No  scruples  stopped 
Mrs.  Eddy  on  her  chosen  path.  After  condemning,  in  the 
most  unmeasured  terms,  mental  malpractice,  she  unblushingly 
resorted  to  it  herself,  and  organized  others  to  resort  to  it,  by 
hurling  back,  mentally,  on  her  imaginary  enemies  all  those  evils 
which,  as  she  thought,  they  were  fastening  on  her.^  In  how  far 
such  sentiments  resulted  from  her  religious  beliefs,  and  in  how 
far  they  were  the  manifestations  of  a  naturally  intolerant  and 
vindictive  spirit,  may  be  an  open  question.  One  thing  is  cer- 
tain :  Christian  Science  did  nothing  to  render  such  excesses  im- 
possible.   "By  their  fruits  you  shall  know  them." 


m 

Mrs.  Eddy's  teaching  concerning  marriage  has  been  much 
under  fire.  It  sounds  strange  to  be  told  that  a  woman  after 
marrying  three  times  and  personally  choosing  her  third  hus- 
band, should  disparage  the  institution  of  matrimony.  She  went 
so  far  as  to  call  it  "legalized  lust"  and  spoke  of  it  as  of  an 
evil,  the  toleration  of  which  only  the  present  backward  state 
of  human  progress  could  justify.  How  flippant  she  could  be 
on  this  subject  is  seen  from  her  answer  to  the  question:  "What 

*Mr.  Peabody  ends  his  Masquerade  with  an  account  of  the  suicide  of  a 
young  lady,  which  he  ascribes  directly  to  tfie  demand  made  on  her  "to  treat 
Mrs.  Eddy's  own  son  and  his  lawyer  in  hostile  fashion — by  sending  arsenical 
poison  into  their  veins  (mentally,  of  course),  or  otherwise  putting  them  to 
death."     The  Beligio-Medical  Masquerade,  pp.   192-194. 


Ethics  of  the  Modern  Mind-Movements  199 

do  you  think  of  marriage?"  She  replied  in  Miscellaneous  Writ- 
ings  "that  it  is  often  convenient,  sometimes  pleasant,  and  occa- 
sionally a  love  affair."  "Marriage,"  she  continued,  "is  sus- 
ceptible of  many  definitions.  It  sometimes  presents  the  most 
wretched  condition  of  human  existence.  To  be  normal,  it  must 
be  a  union  of  the  affections  that  tends  to  lift  mortals  higher."  ^ 
In  these  words  we  discover  an  echo  from  Mrs.  Eddy's  own  mar- 
riage ventures.  But  she  was  not  always  flippant  when  treating 
of  this  subject.  In  the  chapter  devoted  to  it  in  Science  cmd 
Health  are  voiced  many  noble  sentiments.  She  tells  the  mar- 
ried people  that,  "infidelity  to  the  marriage  covenant  is  the 
social  scourge  of  all  races,"  that  "after  marriage  it  is  too  late 
to  grumble  over  incompatibility  of  disposition,"  that  "the  prop- 
agation of  the  human  species  is  a  greater  responsibility,  a  more 
solemn  charge  than  the  culture  of  your  garden,  or  the  raising 
of  stock  to  increase  your  flocks  and  herds." 

Unfortunately  these  platitudes  seem  more  like  an  introduc- 
tion to  the  peculiarities  of  her  teaching  than  an  exhortation 
to  fidelity.  Why  should  Mrs.  Eddy  drag  in  marriage  at  all, 
when  this  subject  seems  so  foreign  to  her  purpose.?  The  fact 
is  that  this  theme  possessed  for  her  a  strange  fascination,  as 
it  offered  her  a  splendid  opportunity  to  draw  out  some  of  the 
consequences  flowing  from  her  theories.  It  also  afforded  her 
an  occasion  to  bring  forward,  among  others,  her  views  on  the 
rights  of  women,  on  the  education  of  children,  on  the  granting 
of  divorce,  and  on  heredity.  But  what  has  attracted  the  great- 
est attention  is  her  statement  that  the  time  will  come, — not  in 
the  hereafter,  but  in  the  present  life, — ^when  marriage  will  give 
way  to  a  better  state,  as  a  direct  result  of  the  teaching  of 
Christian  Science.  As  soon  as  the  world  is  prepared  for  this, 
men  shall  neither  marry  nor  be  given  in  marriage. 

"The  time  cometh,"  she  says,  "of  which  Jesus  spake, 
when  He  declared  that  in  the  resurrection  there  should  be 
no  more  marrying  nor  giving  in  marriage,  but  man  should  be 
as  the  angels.  Then  shall  Soul  rejoice  in  its  own,  wherein  pas- 
sion has  no  part.     Then  white-robed  purity  will  unite  in  one 

*  Miscellaneous  Writings,  p.  52. 


200  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

person  masculine  wisdom  and  feminine  love,  spiritual  under- 
standing and  perpetual  peace."  ^ 

Still  more  enigmatic  are  the  words  which  follow: 

"The  scientific  fact  that  man  and  the  universe  are 
evolved  from  Spirit — God — and  so  are  spiritual  and  good,  is 
as  fixed  in  divine  Science,  as  is  the  proof  that  mortals  gain 
the  sense  of  health  and  heaven  only  as  they  lose  the  sense  of 
sin,  disease  and  matter.  Mortals  can  never  understand  God's 
creation  while  believing  that  man  is  a  creator.  His  children 
already  created  will  be  cognized  only  as  man  seeks  and  finds 
the  truth  of  his  own  being.  Thus  it  is  that  the  real,  ideal  man 
appears  in  proportion  as  mortals,  or  the  false  and  material, 
disappear.  To  ^no  longer  marri/  or  be  given  in  marriage* 
neither  closes  mans  continimty,  nor  his  sense  of  increasing 
number  vn  God's  infinite  plan.  Spiritually  to  understand 
there  is  but  one  creator, — God, — unfolds  his  creation,  con- 
firms the  Scriptures,  brings  the  sweet  assurance  of  no  part- 
ing, no  pain,  and  man  perfect  and  eternal."  ^ 

Marriage  and  material  generation  smacked  too  much  of 
that  non-entity,  matter,  not  to  fall  under  the  ban.  By  speaking 
on  it  as  "one  having  authority"  and  by  timely  appeals  to  the 
Virgin-Birth  of  Christ,  she  impressed  her  first  followers  with  a 
sense  of  awe  and  religious  reverence.  But  even  Mrs.  Eddy 
hardly  expected  that  her  words  would  be  taken  too  literally  by 
her  students. 

"Until  it  is  learned  that  God  is  the  father  of  all,  let  mar- 
riage continue,  and  let  mortals  permit  no  such  disregard  of 
law  as  may  lead  to  a  worse  state  of  society  than  now  exists. 
Honesty  and  virtue  ensure  the  stability  of  the  marriage  cove- 
nant. Spirit  will  ultimately  claim  its  own,  all  that  really  is ; 
and  the  voices  of  physical  sense  be  forever  hushed."  ^ 

Little  did  Mrs.  Eddy  suspect  that  even  in  her  own  lifetime 
a  student  might  lay  a  claim  to  having  exemplified  this  bold 
teaching  of  the  new  "Science"  concerning  spiritual  generation. 

^Science  and  Health,  p.  64. 
*Ibid.,  p.  68. 
*Ibid.,  p.  64. 


Ethics  of  the  Modern  Mmd-Movements  SOI 

In  June,  1890,  Mrs.  Woodbury,  who  had  been  associated  with 
Mrs.  Eddy  since  1879,  and  had  been  one  of  her  foremost  healers 
and  teachers,  claimed  that  her  baby  boy  was  the  result  of  an 
immaculate  conception  and,  consequently,  a  demonstration  of 
Mrs.  Eddy's  theory  of  mental  generation.  Mrs.  Woodbury 
named  the  child  "The  Prince  of  Peace"  and  baptized  him  at 
Ocean  Point,  Maine,  in  a  pool  which  she  called  Bethsaida. 

"Mrs.  Woodbury  would  not  permit  the  child  who  was 
called  Prince  for  short,  to  address  her  husband  as  'father,' 
but  insisted  that  he  address  Mr.  Woodbury  as  'Frank'  and 
herself  as  *Birdie!'  The  fact  that  he  was  a  fine,  healthy 
baby,  and  was  never  ill,  seemed  to  Mrs.  Woodbury's  disciples 
conclusive  evidence  that  he  was  the  Divine  Principle  of  Cliris- 
tian  Science  made  manifest  in  the  flesh.  It  was  their  pleasure 
to  bring  gifts  to  'Prince,'  to  discover  in  his  behavior  indica- 
tions of  his  spiritual  nature;  and  they  professed  to  believe 
that  when  he  grew  to  manhood,  he  would  enter  upon  his 
Divine  ministry."  ^ 

This  romantic  tale,  as  so  many  other  ventures  in  which 
Mrs.  Eddy  was  concerned,  ended  in  the  law  courts  and  in  a 
suit  for  libel  on  the  part  of  Mrs.  Woodbury.  In  an  article 
published  in  the  Arena,  May  1899,  Mrs.  Woodbury  vindicated 
her  honor  against  Mrs.  Eddy's  insinuations  and  at  the  same 
time  exposed  Mrs.  Eddy's  teaching  in  the  following  strong 
language : 

"The  substance  of  certain  instructions  given  by  Mrs. 
Eddy  in  private  is  as  follows:  'If  Jesus  was  divinely  con- 
ceived by  the  Holy  Ghost  or  Spirit,  without  a  human  father, 
Mary  not  having  known  her  husband, — then  women  may  be- 
come mothers  by  a  supreme  effort  of  their  own  minds,  or 
through  the  influence  upon  them  of  an  Unholy  Ghost,  a  ma- 
lign spirit.  Women  of  unquestioned  integrity  who  have  been 
Mrs.  Eddy's  students  testify  that  she  has  so  taught,  and 
that  by  this  teacliing  families  have  been  broken  up ;  that  thus 
maidens  have  been  terrified  out  of  their  wits,  and  stimulated 
into  a  frenzy.  .  .  .  Whatever  her  denials  may  be,  such  was 
Mrs.  Eddy's  teaching  while  in  her  college;  to  which  she  added 

*  Milmine;  oy.  cit.,  p.  430  fF. 


202  Christian  Science  and  tJie  Catholic  Faith 

the  oracular  declaration  that  it  lay  within  her  power  to  dis- 
solve such  motherhood  by  a  wave  of  her  celestial  rod.'  "  ^ 

Here  we  may  leave  this  subject  appealing  once  more  to  Mrs. 
Eddy's  favorite  motto :  "By  their  fruits  you  shall  know  them." 


IV 

If  it  is  true  that  Mrs.  Eddy  did  not  altogether  deny  the 
reality  of  sin,  but  rather  looked  upon  sin  as  an  evil  worse  even 
than  sickness,  it  does  not  follow  that  her  standard  of  morality 
was  a  very  exalted  one.  Her  moral  code  was  vague  and  indefi- 
nite and  could,  at  best,  be  an  unsafe  guide  for  regulating  human 
life.  But  it  may  be  rejoined  that  for  the  modern  mind-healers 
the  Bible  is  an  official  and  an  inspired  book;  that,  in  conse- 
quence, they  cannot  be  accused  of  lacking  a  safe  and  sound 
rule  of  life.  To  this  we  reply  that  it  is,  unfortunately,  a  matter 
of  common  and  daily  observation  that  personal  choice  and  in- 
dividual presumptions  make  of  the  Bible  a  mine  where  each  one 
can  find  what  he  desires,  and  that  it  has  often  been  made  the 
excuse  for  the  greatest  excesses. 

Professor  William  James  speaks  of  these  movements  as 
religions  of  healthy-mindedness.  What,  we  may  ask,  is  a 
healthy  mind.^^  One  in  which  there  dwell  no  false,  embarrassing 
or  idle  concepts ;  one  in  which  truth  resides  and  which  is  exempt 
from  worry  and  empty  fears;  one  which,  finding  all  its  desires 
satisfied,  can  rest  in  perfect  contentment :  all  these  are  essential 
characters  of  a  healthy  mind  that  is  not  only  subjectively  right, 
but  also  in  possession  of  objective  truth. 

Such  qualities  are  not  found  in  the  modem  mental-healing 
cults.  These,  it  is  true,  do  not  admit  doubt  regarding  their 
intellectual  equipment.  Satisfied  with  the  general  impression 
that  they  are  right,  the  modern  mind-healers  will  never  question 
the  foundations  of  their  faith ;  for  failures  they  will  not  blame 
their  system,  but  the  unskillful  management  of  those  who  fail ; 
in  a  word,  their  faith  could  not  be  stronger,  had  they  really  a 
direct  divine  guaranty  for  it.     This  supreme  mental  assurance, 

*  Quoted  in  Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  438. 


Ethics  of  the  Modern  Mmd-MovcTnents  203 

as  far  as  physical  effects  are  concerned,  is  as  good  as  would  be 
a  full  possession  of  objective  truth. 

If,  then,  physical  well-being  were  the  only  consideration, 
the  followers  of  these  new  systems  might  rest  securely  enough 
on  their  beliefs.  But  such  a  subjective  norm  needs  to  be  based 
on  objective  truth,  and  in  this  respect,  we  deny  that  the  new 
mind  comes  up  to  the  definition  of  a  healthy  mind,  or  that  it 
is  better  than  the  old  and  tried  mind,  imbued  with  the  doctrines 
of  faith.  Having  as  their  ultimate  aim,  not  truth,  but  satis- 
faction; not  doctrine,  but  life;  not  revelation,  but  repose,  the 
modern  mind-healers  have  embraced  a  sort  of  refined  epicurean-r 
ism,  not  built,  it  is  true,  on  the  inevitableness  of  fate,  but  on 
the  All-goodness  of  God.  In  ethics  the  modem  mind  movements 
are  utilitarian ;  they  seek  bodily  comfort  to  the  almost  complete 
exclusion  of  other  considerations.  If  they  decry  sin  and  vice, 
it  is  because  sin  and  vice  bear  sorry  fruits  even  for  this  life; 
if  they  recommend  a  doctrine  or  a  practice,  it  is  because  these 
are  fruitful  in  good  results  for  the  comfort  of  earthly  life. 

When  dealing  with  the  great  problem  of  the  goodness  of 
God,  Christian  Scientists  not  only  shut  their  eyes  to  disagree- 
able facts,  but  forget  that  the  goodness  of  God  is  necessarily 
different  from  the  goodness  of  men;  that  its  first  attribute  is 
holiness,  and  its  principal  object  moral  perfection;  that  all 
other  things,  both  material  and  spiritual,  are  subordinate  to 
these;  and,  consequently,  that  virtue  must  be  cultivated  not 
merely  with  a  view  to  bodily  or  mental  comfort,  but  out  of  love 
for  God.  When  these  new  religions  aim  principally  at  banish- 
ing worry  of  every  kind  from  man's  life,  trusting  thereby  to 
secure  excellent  health,  their  aim  being  a  low  one,  no  high 
spirituality  can  result;  for  the  end  in  view  determines  the 
degree  of  perfection  of  any  act,  disposition  or  doctrinal  system. 
A  pure  intention  makes  all  the  difference  in  the  world  in  matters 
ethical.  Psychotherapy  may  recommend,  as  favorable  to  health 
and  happiness,  an  array  of  noble  virtues  which  the  Christian 
religion  may  command  as  a  service  to  God;  in  this  case  the 
mental  healer  and  the  Christian,  while  pursuing  the  same  imme- 
diate end,  yet  embrace  different  modes  of  life,  differentiated  by 
their  ulterior  purpose  or  intention.     In  one  case,  the  motive  js 


204  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

selfish  enjoyment,  in  the  other,  the  love  of  God  above  all  things. 
When  St.  Paul  declares  that  "the  fruit  of  the  Spirit  is  joy, 
peace,  patience,  benignity,  goodness,  longanimity,  mildness, 
faith,  modesty,  continency,  chastity,"  ^  he  mentions  these  as 
results  of  the  spiritual  life,  while  the  one  and  only  aim  of  the 
Christian  should  be  to  live  in  the  Spirit.  If  he  constantly  aims 
at  such  a  spiritual  life,  the  results,  the  fruits  of  godliness,  will 
take  care  of  themselves. 

Compare  with  these  words  of  the  inspired  author  the  senti- 
ments of  one  of  the  best  known  New  Thought  writers  of  the 
present  day : 

*'Thought-causes  are  so  complex,"  writes  Charles  Fill- 
more, "that  it  is  impossible  to  point  out  in  all  cases  the  spe- 
cific thought  that  causes  a  certain  disease;  but  twelve  funda- 
mental mind  activities  lie  at  the  base  of  all  existence,  and 
when  any  one  of  these  is  sounded  all  the  others  give  atten- 
tion. .  .  .  Nearly  all  sick  people  lack  vital  force,  hence  the 
Life  treatment  is  good  for  all.  Hate,  anger,  jealousy,  malice, 
etc.,  are  almost  universal  in  human  consciousness,  and  a  treat- 
ment for  Love  will  prove  a  healing  balm.  Anxiety,  worry, 
and  fear  of  poverty  burden  most  people,  and  the  Pros- 
perity treatment  will  be  effective.  Do  not  be  afraid  to  use 
the  statements  in  healing,  as  a  whole  or  in  part ;  they  will  al- 
ways help  and  never  hurt  any  one.  Remember  the  object  of 
all  treatments  is  to  raise  the  mind  to  the  Christ  Conscious- 
ness, through  which  all  true  healing  is  accomplished."  ^ 

The  keynote  of  this  treatment  consists  in  putting  the  ban 
on  worry  and  on  anything  that  might  burden  the  human  mind. 
Yet  the  absence  of  worry  in  our  present  condition  and  under 
all  circumstances  is  not  a  virtue.  To  make  this  a  direct  aim 
in  life  is  to  encourage  a  happy-go-lucky  kind  of  disposition 
which  eventually  will  result  in  apathy,  lack  of  interest  and 
ambition,  a  narrowing  of  the  mental  horizon  and  utter  selfish- 
ness. If  these  results  are  not  so  apparent  in  our  own  days, 
it  may  be  that  the  newness  of  these  views  has  so  far  prevented 

*Gal.  5:23. 

'  Fillmore,  Christian  Healing,  p.  258, 


Ethics  of  the  Modern  Mmd-Moveinents  205 

them  from  running  into  seed;  but,  from  present  results,  it 
is  impossible  to  forecast  what  the  future  will  reveal. 

Moreover,  the  rejection  of  all  anxiety  and  worry  means  a 
stunting  and  stifling  of  conscience.  Conscience  is  a  monitor 
which  keeps  the  offender  on  the  alert  until  he  amends.  In  the 
modern  mind-healing  systems  sickness  must  perform  this  office, 
while  conscience  must  be  looked  upon  askance  as  a  breeder  of 
disease.  A  mental  treatment  undoubtedly  can  cure  at  least 
for  a  time  most  men  of  this  troublesome  guide ;  there  is  nothing 
like  a  systematic  course  of  reasoning  to  make  man  as  nearly 
as  possible  conscienceless.  A  New  Thought  treatment  might 
thus  prove  to  be  of  invaluable  assistance  to  professional  law- 
breakers ;  or  let  us  rather  say,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  these  do 
by  similar  processes  of  reasoning  set  themselves  above  the  fear 
and  worry  of  detection  and  punishment.  Surely,  not  a  very 
good  recommendation  for  this  sort  of  medicine ! 

We  may  call  attention  also  to  another  aspect  of  these  treat- 
ments, their  entire  indifference  as  to  objective  truth.  By 
affirming  what  is  positively  false,  and  by  denying  what  is  un- 
doubtedly a  fact,  simply  because  good  physical  results  are  ex- 
pected, they  try  to  build  up  human  life  on  a  lie.  It  is  here, 
if  anywhere,  that  we  find  the  principle,  "the  end  justifies  the 
means"  applied  with  an  utter  disregard  to  truth.  It  goes  with- 
out saying  that  such  a  conduct  is  absolutely  at  variance  with 
sound  morality. 

One  favorite  treatment,  resorted  to  by  all  modem  mind- 
healers,  is  that  of  love  (oftenest  spelled  with  a  capital  L). 
The  praises  of  this  treatment  are  sounded  everywhere.  The 
love  of  God  for  men  is  insisted  on  and  extolled  in  a  hundred 
different  tunes.  "The  universe  is  created  and  governed  by 
Love."  "We  must  get  into  Love's  ways ;  we  will  then  come  into 
harmony  with  the  universal  law."  "Punishment  is  not  a  word 
known  in  the  realm  of  Love."  "One  who  condemns  another  for 
any  reason  whatever,  has  not  an  understanding  of  the  spiritual 
law  of  Love.  The  one  who  condemns  or  criticizes  another  lets 
bitterness  into  his  own  mind." 

"To  love  your  enemies  is  not  for  sentiment,  but  for  a 
practical  double  purpose  of  cleansing  your  mind  of  the  cor- 


206  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

roding  hate,  and  also  of  making  of  your  enemies  friends,  so 
that  their  thoughts  will  go  out  in  peace  to  bless  you,  and  at 
the  same  time  to  cause  peaceful  conditions  to  obtain  within 
themselves.  The  most  foolish  thing  one  can  do  is  to  hate 
and  get  angry.  It  is  a  violation  of  the  law  under  which  we 
are  intended  to  live."  ^ 

Far  be  it  from  us  to  minimize  the  importance  of  love  in  the 
moral  and  spiritual  order.  Love,  the  love  of  God,  and  the  love 
of  man,  is  the  great  commandment.  Love  underlies  the  whole 
work  of  Creation:  God's  works  are  works  of  love,  even  when 
He  seems  to  act  the  angry  God  and  when  He  strikes  in  pun- 
ishment. Yet  to  define  minutely  what  the  love  of  God  must, 
and  must  not  do,  is  to  assume  too  complete  a  knowledge  both  of 
the  nature  of  God  and  of  His  relations  to  man.  Much  wiser  is 
it  to  take  the  facts  as  they  are,  and  then  to  try  in  the  light 
of  these  facts  to  understand  a  little  of  the  nature  of  the  Divine 
Love. 

So  likewise  not  every  human  love  can  be  canonized  as  good. 
In  our  present  order  love  implies  hate:  love  of  what  is  good 
implies  hatred  of  what  is  evil;  love  for  a  sinner  implies  hatred 
for  sin.  Consequently,  the  sentiments  of  hatred  are  not  entirely 
excluded  from  the  Christian  Law.  Besides,  true  love  for  those 
who  deserve  or  require  our  love  is  productive  of  anxiety  and 
worry,  dispositions  which  the  modem  mind-healers  make  it  a 
point  to  disown.  Thus  we  are  led  into  an  inextricable  medley 
of  confusion  out  of  which  even  our  would-be  leaders  are  unable 
to  point  the  way. 

Against  this  analysis  of  the  so-called  spiritual  element  in 
New  Thought  it  is  protested  that  the  lives  of  its  adherents 
show  the  groundlessness  of  all  these  inferences.  Their  lives 
are  honorable ;  their  interests  are  varied ;  their  activity  is  even 
increased;  in  every  possible  way  they  are  estimable  and  useful 
citizens. 

To  this  I  reply  that  practically  all  the  followers  of  the 
New  Thought  movement  have  been  trained  under  a  different 
regime.     The  past  has  followed  them  into  the  present  and  has 

*Cf.  Mills,  Anna  W.:  Practical  Metaphysics  for  Healing  and  Self-Culture 
(Chicago,  1896),  pp.  284-285. 


Ethics  of  the  Modern  Mmd-Movements  207 

guarded  them  against  excesses  which  would  naturally  follow  a 
whole-souled  acceptance  of  this  new  doctrine.  They  have 
adopted  it  only  to  the  extent  that  it  appealed  to  them,  and, 
consequently,  they  have  not  been  thoroughly  molded  by  it. 
But  even  where  New  Thought  influences  have  been  active  since 
early  youth,  the  environment  invariably  has  acted  as  a  cor- 
rective in  a  good  many  ways.  The  appeal  to  such  facts  is 
therefore  out  of  place.  It  is  universally  admitted  that  the  in- 
fluence of  Islam  has  been  bad;  yet  it  took  centuries  for  this 
influence  to  work  out  its  logical  conclusions.  So  it  is  impossible 
to  gauge  the  trend,  and  measure  the  final  results,  of  any  public 
cause  in  the  lives  of  its  first  adherents.  Time  alone  can  tell, 
and  even  then  it  may  happen  that  thoughtful  men  will  forestall 
the  evil  which  logically  would  flow  from  its  teaching. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE    NEW    MOVEMENT    VERSUS    MIRACLES 


Christian  Science  and  New  Thought  throughout  assume 
that  historical  miracles  must  be  explained — or  rather  explained 
away — in  the  light  of  modern  mental  sciences.  The  super- 
natural is  banished  out  of  existence.  Christ,  let  us  rather  say 
Jesus  (for  they  commonly  distinguish  between  the  two),  for 
them  was  a  faith-healer,  the  most  successful  faith-healer  that 
ever  lived.  His  miracles  cannot  be  accepted  as  supernatural 
facts,  but  they  are  wonderful  as  feats  of  a  strong  and  saintly 
personality.  He  may  be  exceptionally  successful,  but  it  is  be- 
cause he  is  an  exceptional  man:  any  one  favored  to  the  same 
extent  by  Mother  Nature  would  do  as  well.-'^ 

These  views  are  a  legacy  which  the  modern  mind-movement 
owes  to  its  pioneer  teacher,  P.  P.  Quimby.     Quimby,  in  fact, 

*The  literature  on  miracles  and  their  relation  to  psychotherapy  is 
enormous.  All  opponents  of  the  reality  of  miracles  in  the  true  sense  of 
the  word  now  adopt  the  same  views:  Christ's  miracles  must  be  brought 
in  line  with  modern  mind  cures.  On  this  subject  from  the  modern  point 
of  view  confer:  Evans:  Primitive  Mind-Cure  (Boston,  1884),  chaps.  30-23; 
The  Divine  Law  of  Cure  (Boston,  1881),  Part  I,  chaps.  16-20;  Part  II, 
chap.  7;  H.  W.  Dresser:  History  of  the  New-Thought  Movement  (New 
York,  1919),  passim;  Worcester-McComb-Coriat :  Religion  and  Medicine 
(New  York,  1908);  Worcester-McComb :  The  Christian  Religion  as  a  Heal- 
ing Power  (New  York,  1909).  Following  the  same  general  trend  we  have 
also  Rev.  J.  M.  Thompson:  Miracles  in  the  New  Testament  (2d  ed.,  London, 
1911)  ;  Duif  and  Allen:  Psychic  Research  and  Gospel  Miracles  (New  York, 
1902). 

Among  the  many  defenders  of  the  supernatural  character  of  Christ's 
miracles  we  must  mention  on  the  Protestant  side  Newman's  Essays  on 
Miracles;  archbishop  R.  C.  Trench:  Notes  on  the  Miracles  of  Our  Lord  (new 
ed..  New  York,  1880)  ;  J.  B.  Mozley:  Eight  Lectures  on  Miracles,  preached 
before  the  University  of  Oxford  (new  ed.,  London,  1895);  J.  J.  Lias: 
Are  Miracles  Credible?  (2d  revised  ed.,  London,  1890). 

On  the  Catholic  side,  besides  all  manuals  on  Apologetics,  we  may  espe- 
cially mention  Joseph  de  Tonqu6dec:  Introduction  a  VEtude  du  Merveilleux 
et  du  Miracle  (Paris,  1916)  and  the  small,  but  valuable  treatise  by  the 
Rev.  G.  H.  Joyce,  S.J.,  entitled  The  Question  of  Miracles  (London,  1914). 

208 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  209 

claimed  to  have  "rediscovered  the  method  of  healing  by  which 
Jesus  wrought,  not  his  miracles,  but  his  highly  intelligible 
works  of  healing."     Says  Mr.  H.  W.  Dresser: 

"His  work  with  the  sick  seemed  to  him  [Quimby]  a  spir- 
itual science,  a  science  of  life  and  happiness,  as  he  called  it. 
This  science  he  found  implicit  in  the  teachings  of  Christ.  His 
manuscripts  are  for  the  most  part  devoted  to  a  study  of 
his  experiences  with  the  sick  in  such  a  way  as  to  show  that 
the  truths  they  implied  were  the  jbruths  which  Jesus  came  to 
reveal." 

And  again : 

"His  practice  with  the  sick  was  in  some  measure  at  least 
a  rediscovery  of  the  original  therapeutic  gospel.  Its  appli- 
cation to  healing  is  a  part  only  of  the  science  which  came  to 
give  men  fulness  of  life,  but  healing  had  been  the  neglected 
part  of  the  gospel.  It  was  necessary  that  some  one  should 
arise  to  specialize  upon  this.  Such  in  brief  was  the  wor]^ 
given  Mr.  Quimby  to  do.  This  was  the  work  he  accomplishea 
with  such  impressive  success."  ^ 

This  appeal  to  gospel  precedent  is  one  of  the  most  valuable 
assets  of  the  modern  mind-healer  in  spreading  his  theories.  He 
can  tell  his  followers : 

"Return  to  the  Bible  to  see  if  it  be  true  that  it  contains 
an  inner  or  spiritual  meaning;  to  see  if,  indeed,  there  be  a 
neglected  science  of  the  Christ  in  the  New  Testament,  imply- 
ing principles  of  universal  application  through  spiritual 
healing.  If  so,  this  inner  or  spiritual  truth  may  be  the  great 
truth  of  the  new  age ;  it  may  imply  the  second  coming  of  the 
Lord  in  deepest  reality."  ^ 

Mr.  Evans  found  in  Christ  Jesus  the  highest  exemplifica- 
tion of  the  idea  that  God  dwells  in  us  as  the  source  of  life  and 
health. 

"The  idea  of  the  indwelling  of  God  in  man  as  the  source 
of  life  and  health,  which  was  so  deeply  rooted  in  the  con- 

*  Cf.  H.  W.  Dresser:  History  of  the  New-Thought  Movement  (New  York, 
1919),  pp.  42-18,  70. 
'Ibid.,  p.  69. 


210  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

sciousness  of  the  pious  Jews,  was  carried  over  into  Christian- 
ity, and  received  there  a  more  philosophical  expression.  The 
whole  life  of  Jesus  the  Christ  was  the  highest  exemplification 
of  the  power  of  this  idea  ever  witnessed  in  the  history  of  the 
race,  and  a  demonstration  of  its  theoretical  and  practical 
truth.  He  cured  diseases  of  mind  and  hody  hy  bringing  men 
into  conscious  contact  with  the  one  and  only  Life.  Thus  we 
see  that  the  higher  forms  of  the  religious  life  and  the  state  of 
mind  and  body  which  we  designate  by  the  name  of  healthy, 
are  closely  associated."  ^ 

Again  he  writes: 

"That  Jesus,  after  the  age  of  thirty  years,  exhibited  a 
marvelous  power  of  healing  the  sick  without  medicine,  and 
which  so  far  surpassed  the  power  of  his  contemporaries  as  to 
be  deemed  miraculous,  is  a  well-established  fact  and  as  well 
certified  as  the  principal  facts  in  the  life  of  Alexander  or 
Caesar.  ...  It  has  been  supposed  by  some  that  Jesus  spent 
his  early  life  among  the  Essen es  who  were  called  in  Egypt 
therapeutce,  or  healers.  This  may  or  may  not  be  true.  We 
have  no  historic  evidence  for  it,  and  it  is,  in  itself,  a  matter 
of  little  importance.  But  whatever  means  he  used,  the  power 
of  the  Word  and  the  Spirit  was  always  predominant.  He 
demanded  as  an  iTidis  pens  able  condition  a  trustftd  submission, 
or  an  act  of  faith.  .  .  .  The  means  which  Jesus  used  may 
have  stood  in  some  relation  to  magnetic  or  psychological  phe- 
nomena. But  the  marvelous  power  of  Jesus  appears  far  more 
like  an  intelligent  mastery  of  Nature  by  the  soul.  The  mind 
of  man,  originally  endowed  with  dominion  over  the  earth,  re- 
covered its  old  rights  by  the  holy  innocence  of  Jesus,  conquer- 
ing the  unnatural  power  of  disease  and  death.  .  .  .  The  cures 
wrought  by  Jesus  the  Christ  are  as  much  in  harmony  with 
nature,  when  properly  understood,  as  the  operation  of  the 
electric  telegraph  and  telephone,  or  the  taking  of  photo- 
graphs. The  law  by  which  they  were  effected  is  not  an  incom- 
municable divine  secret  and  impenetrable  mystery,  but  will 
some  day  be  as  well  understood  as  any  of  the  processes  of 
nature,  and  better  than  the  action  of  medicines  in  the  cure  of 
disease."  ^ 

^  Evans:  The  Divine  Law  of  Cure  (Boston,  1881),  p.  68. 
Ubid.,  pp.   124-126. 


The  New  Movement  Verstos  Miracles  211 

Mrs.  Eddy  likewise  naturalizes,  so  to  say,  Christ's  miracles 
by  bringing  them  down  to  the  level  of  her  own  cures.  Her 
healing  she  called  divine  healing  and  also  Christian  Science,  to 
indicate,  on  the  one  hand,  that  she  considered  the  Divine  Mind 
to  be  the  only  source  of  cures,  and,  on  the  other,  to  identify 
her  own  cures  with  Christ's  miraculous  works. 

"The  term  Christian  Science,"  she  writes,  "was  intro- 
duced by  the  author  to  indicate  the  scientific  system  of  di- 
vine healing.  The  revelation  consists  of  two  parts :  ( 1 )  The 
discovery  of  this  divine  Science  of  Mind-Healing  through  a 
spiritual  sense  of  the  Scriptures,  and  through  the  teachings 
of  the  Comforter  as  promised  by  the  Master;  (2)  the  proof, 
by  present  demonstration,  that  the  so-called  miracles  of 
Jesus  did  not  specially  belong  to  a  dispensation  now  ended, 
but  that  they  illustrate  an  ever  operative  divine  Principle. 
The  operation  of  this  Principle  indicates  forever  the  scientific 
order  and  continuity  of  being."  ^ 

The  same  tendency  reappears  in  Retrospection  and  Intro- 
spection  where  we  read : 

"The  miracles  recorded  in  the  Bible  which  had  before 
seemed  to  me  supernatural  grew  divinely  natural  and  appre- 
hensible, though  uninspired  interpreters  ignorantly  pro- 
nounce Christ's  healing  miraculous  instead  of  seeing  therein 
the  operation  of  the  divine  law."  ^ 

It  is  somewhat  amusing  to  find  that  the  authors  of  the 
Emmanuel  Movement,  not  satisfied  with  indorsing  these  ex- 
planations, seriously  undertake  to  establish  them  scientifically, 
and,  then,  virtually  apologize  for  their  present  inability  to  do  so 
with  regard  to  all  of  Christ's  miracles.  They  unwittingly  show 
their  true  aim  and  lack  of  historical  perspective  when  they 
begin  their  investigation  with  an  a  priori  principle  of  expediency 
which  automatically  vitiates  all  their  subsequent  reasonings. 
"A  miracle,"  they  boldly  assert,  "if  it  is  to  meet  with  acceptance 
at  the  hands  of  modern  men,  must  be   shown  to  have   some 

analogy  with  facts  and  phenomena  within  their  knowledge."    If 

« 
^  Science  and  Health,  p.  123. 
'Retrospection   and   Introspection,   p.   31. 


^12  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

in  individual  cases  this  cannot  as  yet  be  done,  prudence  counsels 
that  the  miracles  be  not  immediately  rejected,  but  that  they 
"be  reserved  to  the  day  of  fuller  light;  for  it  would  be  rash 
to  suppose  that  all  the  light  possible  in  this  matter  has  been 
vouchsafed  us."  "The  rationalistic  criticism  of  fifty  years 
ago,"  they  add,  "rejected  the  healing  wonders  of  Christ.  Fuller 
knowledge  enables  us  to  smile  at  the  sceptical  dogmatism  of 
this  criticism.  Why  may  it  not  be  that  the  knowledge  of  fifty 
years  hence  will  be  able  to  make  intelligible  some  of  the  narra- 
tives on  which  faith  stumbles  today." 

It  is  not  faith,  but  the  lack  of  it,  which  stumbles  over  any 
of  Christ's  miracles.  The  underlying  idea  throughout  this 
section  is  that  Christ  as  "physician  and  healer  of  souls  and 
bodies  of  men"  must  not  be  thought  of  as  bringing  into  play 
any  but  natural  forces,  but  only  as  having  possessed  eminently 
what  others  possess  in  an  ordinary  degree,  thus  ranking  among 
the  greatest  of  the  world's  great  physicians. 

"From  time  to  time,"  we  are  told,  "men  have  arisen  en- 
dowed with  a  peculiar  power  to  dispel  the  moral  and  physical 
maladies  of  their  fellow  men.  Among  these  'the  first  among 
many  brethren'  stands  the  Lord  Jesus,  the  Great  Physician. 
Of  Him  it  was  said  that  He  taught  and  healed.  Coordinat- 
ing His  cures  with  others  that  have  been  wrought  in  ancient 
and  modem  times,  we  obtain  a  new  sense  of  the  nature  and 
reality  of  His  mighty  works,  that  removes  them  from  the 
stifling  atmosphere  [sic!]  of  the  old  supernatural  vacuum, 
and  gives  them  a  place  under  the  starry  heavens  and  among 
the  mysterious  forces  of  God's  universe." 

Christ's  unique  personality,  Christ's  personal  human  in- 
fluence, such  is  the  source  of  His  cures,  and  if  we  bear  in  mind 
"our  own  ignorance  of  the  limits  to  the  influence  of  mind  over 
body,  we  will  do  well  to  avoid  all  hasty  dogmatism  as  to  what 
would  be  possible  or  impossible  to  such  a  one  as  Christ."  ^ 

The  originators  of  the  Emmanuel  movement,  nevertheless, 
notwithstanding  this  wise  restriction,  labor  hard  to  confine 
Christ's  miracles  within  such  limits  as  so-called  modern  science 
*  Worcester-McComb-Coriat:  Religion  and  Medicine,  pp.  341  ff. 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  213 

allows  for  the  healing  of  disease  by  mental  influence.  And 
first  of  all  they  exclude  altogether  certain  classes  of  ailments? 
finding  that  "there  is  no  mention  in  the  records  of  His  healing 
such  diseases  as  tuberculosis,  typhus,  diphtheria,  and  the  like." 
As  for  leprosy  which,  in  the  view  of  modern  medical  science, 
is  incurable,  they  remind  us  "that  in  the  ancient  world  two 
types  of  leprosy  were  recognized,  the  one  curable,  the  other  in- 
curable," and  that  "from  the  vague  description  given  in  the 
gospels  we  are  unable  to  decide  which  type  is  referred  to."  ^ 

After  eliminating  these  several  classes,  they  take  the  case 
of  the  man  stricken  with  the  palsy  as  a  term  of  comparison, 
and,  by  a  close  scrutiny,  they  derive  from  it  a  set  of  rules  which 
are  made  to  fit  all  the  reported  cures  of  Christ.  By  this  means 
they  claim  to  discover,  firstly,  that  Jesus  recognized  the  moral 
causes  which  in  certain  cases  lie  behind  the  physical  disease. 
Their  argumentation  proceeds  as  follows : 

"The  friends  of  the  sick  man  want  Jesus  to  heal  him  as 
it  were  by  a  wave  of  the  hand,  but  Jesus  is  no  magician  and 
He  knows  that  the  moral  malady  is  at  the  root  of  the  trouble. 
He  is  very  far  indeed  from  sharing  the  prevailing  theological 
notion  of  His  time  that  every  sickness  in  itself  was  evidence 
of  sin,  open  or  unconfessed.  No !  rather,  for  Him  disease  and 
sin  are  parts  of  a  complex  order — the  kingdom  of  evil — to 
overcome  which  He  felt  Himself  sent  by  God.  His  Gospel  or 
good  news  was  in  essence  this,  that  God  must  no  longer  be 
conceived  as  the  author  of  the  misery  and  torture  that  make 
of  human  life  a  hell.  On  the  contrary.  He  is  Love  and  a^ 
Love  He  is  ever  seeking  to  express  Himself  in  joy."  ^ 

In  the  second  place  they  find  that  Christ's  healing  power 
required  as  a  psychological  medium  and  spiritual  condition 
faith  at  least  on  the  part  of  either  healer,  patient  or  friends. 

"This  is  the  rule,"  they  say,  "to  which  there  is  but  one 
clear  and  necessary  exception.  In  the  case  of  demon  posses- 
sion the  mental  organism  was  itself  so  disorganized  that 
faith  or  any  other  rational  or  motived  act  was  impossible. 
Jesus  in  these  instances  began  by   soothing  the  mind  and 

*  Worcester-McComb-Coriat:  op.  cit.,  p.  345. 
^Ihid.,  p.  350. 


214  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

distracting  it  from  its  obsession,  and  then,  with  the  naked 
force  of  His  own  personality  revealing  itself  in  look,  gesture 
and  word  of  command.  He  broke  down  the  structure  of  hal- 
lucination and  delusion  which  the  morbid  action  of  the  mind 
had  built  up  and,  thereby.  He  set  the  sufferer  free  from  his 
disorder.  But  wherever  a  measure  of  self-control  was  left. 
He  demanded  faith."  ^ 

Finally,  they  assert  that  the  secret  of  Christ's  healing  was 
an  ethical  power,  dependent,  next  to  God,  on  communion  with 
Him  through  faith  and  prayer: 

"He  is  the  appointed  Redeemer  of  mankind,"  they  ex- 
plain, "the  Founder  of  God's  kingdom  upon  earth  and,  there- 
fore, He  was  equipped  with  the  power  necessary  to  oppose 
and  overcome  the  whole  order  of  evil,  to  destroy  it,  not  in  its 
outward  manifestations  only,  but  in  its  ultimate  causes.  His 
power  to  heal  is,  therefore,  only  the  visible  manifestation  of 
another  power.  His  power  to  heal  the  guilt  and  activity  of 
sin.  This  power  was  not  a  power  given  Him  once  and  for  all, 
a  magical  endowment,  rather  was  it  an  ethical  quality,  to 
be  sustained  through  communion  with  God."  ^ 

It  must  be  acknowledged  that  this  easy  and  naturally  rather 
persuasive  explanation  has  appealed  to  many  who  take  only 
a  secondary  interest  in  the  doings  of  the  mind-healers.  Not 
infrequently  is  it  assumed  as  demonstrated  that  Christ's  mir-i 
acles  must  now  no  longer  be  treated  as  anything  else  than 
natural  mind  cures.  Some  grant  this  grudgingly  and  console 
themselves  with  the  consideration  that,  after  all,  miracles  are 
not  essentially  necessary  proofs  of  the  truth  of  Christianity. 
Many  a  one,  however,  may  feel  as  if  the  ground  was  gradually 
slipping  from  underneath  his  feet,  when  he  hears  the  shout 
of  triumph  in  the  camp  of  the  atheist  over  this  new  important 
victory.  But  it  fell  to  Mr.  Hudson  to  invert  these  roles,  and  to 
go  so  far — strange  to  say — as  to  raise  this  naturalistic  ex- 
plantation  to  the  rank  of  a  proof  for  the  truthworthiness  of  the 
gospel  history.     Mr.  Hudson  thinks  of  Christ  as   of   a  man 

*  Worcester,  McComb-Coriat :  op.  cit.,  p.  352. 
Ubid,,  p.  355. 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  ^15 

who  for  some  unexplained  reason  failed  to  communicate  the 
secret  of  his  success  to  his  disciples  and  future  biographers. 

"These,"  says  he,  "have  recorded  his  words,  but  not  his 
reasons,  for  he  gave  none.  If,  therefore,  science  demonstrates 
that  the  powers  that  he  possessed  are  possible ;  that  the  con- 
dition of  their  exercise  are  precisely  what  he  declared  them 
to  be ;  and  that  they  cannot  be  exercised  without  a  strict  com- 
pliance with  those  conditions,  the  internal  evidence  for  the 
truth  of  his  history  is  overwhelming."  ^ 

These  gentlemen  with  faint  praise  and  fair  words  rather 
condemn  than  commend  Christ.  To  exalt  His  humanity  in 
order  to  deny  His  divinity  has  become  a  favorite  method  of 
attack  with  all  those  who  disbelieve  in  the  supernatural.  The 
issue  is,  therefore,  squarely  drawn,  which  we  must  try  to  meet 
just  as  squarely,  by  examining  into  the  question  whether  the 
Gospel  cures  are  nothing  but  extraordinary  mind  cures,  or, 
on  the  contrary,  real  miracles  which  no  power,  short  of  the 
divine,  could  perform. 


Be  their  pretended  objections  to  Christ's  miracles  what 
they  may,  the  real  difficulty  with  most  modem  men  lies  in 
an  unacknowledged  hostility  to  all  that  transcends  the  natural 
order.  To  argue,  following  the  ImTnanence  school  of  Christian 
apologists  that  miracles  can  no  longer  serve  as  a  criterion  for 
the  truth  of  Christianity,  because  it  is  impossible  to  distinguish 
miracles  from  kindred  non-miraculous  facts,  is  to  concede  more 
to  the  opponents  of  the  Christian  religion  than  these  authors 
were  willing  to  admit. ^  For  if  we  must  concede  to  the  modern 
mind  healers  that  Christ's  signs  and  wonders  may  be  signs  and 
wonders,  indeed,  but  not  miracles  in  the  strict  sense  of  the 
word,  we  must  cease  to  rest  on  them  as  credentials  of  Christ's 
Divine  mission  and,  especially,  of  His  Divinity.    Will  not  many 

*  Hudson :  The  Law  of  Psychic  Phenomena,  p.  342. 

"Confer  on  this  point  E.  Le  Roy,  in  Annales  de  Philosophie  Chr^tienne, 
1906,  art.  "Essai  sur  la  Notion  du  Miracle."  Also  Blondel:  "Lettre  sur 
I'Apologetique,"  ibid.,  January,  1896.  These  authors  based  themselves  on 
Bergson's  philosophy  as  contained  in  his  Evolution  Cr4atrice. 


216  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

at  once  conclude  that  the  Christian  Revelation  rests  on  no 
secure  foundation;  that  it  is  a  sham,  or  at  best  a  fatal  error? 
This  inference  may  not  be  warranted,  but  it  certainly  lies  very 
near.  For  even  though  we  grant  that  there  exist  other  creden- 
tials to  Christ's  mission,  there  yet  remains  a  settled  conviction 
that,  if  Christ  be  truly  the  Son  of  God  in  the  full  sense  of  the 
word.  He  must  have  performed  the  works  of  God. 

"The  fathers  undoubtedly  made  deductions  from  the 
force  of  miracles  as  evidence,"  says  Mozley,  "but  that  the 
person  of  the  Messiah  and  Son  of  God  who  came  to  be  the 
Mediator  between  God  and  man,  and  to  atone  by  His  death 
for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world,  would,  when  He  came,  be 
known  and  distinguished  wholly  without  any  miraculous  ele- 
ment in  His  birth,  life  or  death,  simply  living  and  passing 
through  the  world  in  that  respect  like  an  ordinary  man — 
was  an  idea  which  never  even  occurred  to  the  mind  of  any 
father  and  which,  had  it  been  presented  to  him,  he  would  have 
at  once  discarded."  -^ 

Nor  did  the  earliest  opponents  of  the  gospel  question  the 
preternatural  character  of  Christ's  wonderful  worksc  Two 
explanations,  and  only  two,  seemed  to  them  possible:  either 
these  works  were  of  God,  or  they  must  be  ascribed  to  magic. 
The  Jews  would  contend  that  they  were  the  works  of  Beelzebub. 
"This  man  casteth  not  out  devils  but  by  Beelzebub,  the  prince 
of  the  devils."  ^  Similar  views  were  advocated  by  the  earliest 
anti-Christian  writers  among  the  Pagans.  Their  religious 
skepticism  contended  with  their  inherited  superstition  to  raise 
objections  against  the  hope  with  which  Christ's  miracles  in- 
spired the  Christians. 

After  the  Reformation  the  nature  of  these  attacks  changed. 
Philosophical  considerations  led  the  pantheist  Spinoza  (1632- 
1677)  to  deny  the  very  possibility  of  miracles,  and  the  skeptical 
Hume  (1771-1776) — followed  in  the  nineteenth  century  by  the 
empiricist  John  Stewart  Mill  (1806-1873)  and  a  host  of  others 
— to  impugn  not  so  much  the  possibility  as  the  credibility  of 
miraculous   accounts.     Woolston    (1669-1731),   on  the  other 

*  Mozley:  Eight  Lectures  on  Miracles  (London,  1895),  p.  313. 
=^Matt.  12:24. 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  217 

hand,  interpreted  the  historical  miracles  of  the  gospel  as  so 
many  allegorical  fables.^ 

The  nineteenth  century  again  witnessed  a  change  of  front. 
Paulus  (1761-1851)  refused  to  see  anything  miraculous  in  the 
gospel  narratives  and  devised  natural  explanations  for  the 
gospel  miracles;  Strauss  (1808-1874)  absolutely  rejected  this 
miraculous  element  as  so  many  mythical  accretions ;  but  the 
explanation  that  in  our  times  finds  the  largest  number  of 
votaries  bases  itself  on  the  hidden  powers  of  nature,  and  on 
the  power  of  the  human  mind  over  them.  This  objection,  as 
Father  Joyce  so  well  sums  it  up,  states  that  "the  accounts  of 
the  Svonder-cures'  contained  in  the  Gospels  and  in  some  of  the 
lives  of  the  saints  are  in  the  main  true ;  but  orthodox  Christian- 
ity has  blundered  in  reckoning  them  as  supernatural."  ^  It  is 
to  this  category  of  objectors  that  we  must  turn;  for  we  have 
now  to  do  with  men  that,  far  from  denying  all  divine  interven- 
tion in  the  affairs  of  men,  are  rather  inclined  to  exaggerate 
than  to  minimize  the  extent  of  this  intervention,  looking  in 
a  very  material  way  up  to  God  as  the  ever  present  help  in  all 
human  ills  and  needs. 

It  is  important  that  we  should  not  embark  on  this  discussion 
without  taking  our  bearings.  What  is  a  miraculous  event  ?  By 
what  does  it,  if  at  all,  distinguish  itself  from  non-miraculous 
marvelous  phenomena  .^^  St.  Thomas  defines  a  miracle  to  be  a 
sense-perceptible  fact  produced  by  God  outside  the  order  of  the 
whole  universe.^  It  is  obvious  to  all  that  this  definition  is  not 
of  the  nature  of  a  first  principle,  but  that  it  sums  up  the  in- 
ferences to  which  an  unbiased  study  of  certain  facts  leads.  It 
serves   the  excellent  purpose   of  making  clear  from  the  very 

*Cf.  Spinoza:  Tractatus  Theologico-PoUticus  (London,  1862),  pp.  120  ff; 
Hume:  An  Essay  Concerning  Human  Understanding  (Edinburgh,  1748, 
1880);  Mill:  Three  Essays  on  Religion  (New  York,  18T4),  pp.  217-241; 
Woolston:  The  Moderator  Between  the  Infidel  and  the  Apostate  (1721); 
Discourses  on  the  Miracles  of  Christ  (1727-1729). 

^  Joyce:  The  Question  of  Miracles  (London,  1914),  p.  43.  Paulus:  Das 
Leben  Jesu  als  Orundlage  einer  reinen  Oeschichte  des  Urchristentums  (Hei- 
delberg, 1828);  Strauss:  Das  Leben  Jesu  (1835-1836);  Renan,  in  his  Life 
of  Jesus  (1863,  translated  in  the  same  year  into  English),  follows  the  same 
methods.  "Let  the  gospels  be  in  part  legendary,"  he  says  in  the  Introduc- 
tion, "that  is  evident,  since  they  are  full  of  miracles  and  the  supernatural" 
(p.  17). 

^  Summa  Theologica,  Pars  I,  q.  110,  art.  4. 


S18  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

beginning  where  exactly  we  place  the  difference  between  Christ's 
miracles  and  the  cures  of  the  mind  healers.  While  the  latter 
insist  that  their  healing  is  natural,  we  maintain  that  a  study  of 
the  gospel  miracles — to  limit  ourselves  now  to  these — leads  to 
the  conclusion  that  nature,  including  human  nature,  possesses 
no  power  to  perform  such  works,  or  to  perform  them  in  the 
manner  in  which  Christ  performed  them.  We  do  not  say 
that  these  miracles  violate  the  laws  of  nature,  any  more  than 
man's  free  interference  violates  them;  but  we  do  say  that  a 
higher  power  intervenes  which  is  not  subject  to  these  laws,  and 
that  this  power  is  God.  We  do  not  admit  that  in  order  to  be 
justified  to  pronounce  something  a  true  miracle,  it  must  be  such 
that  nature  at  no  time  could  bring  about  a  similar  effect,  and 
that,  consequently,  before  calling  any  fact  a  miracle,  it  is  neces- 
sary to  define  the  exact  limits  of  the  powers  of  nature;  on  the 
contrary,  we  claim  that  under  given  circumstances  a  given 
event  may  point  with  moral  certainty  to  God  as  its  direct  and 
immediate  author. 

Take  for  instance  the  question  of  a  miraculous  cure.  To 
establish  its  miraculous  character,  it  is  not  necessary  that  no 
power  capable  of  coping  with  this  particular  disease  should 
exist  anywhere  in  nature;  it  is  sufficient  that  such  curative 
powers  should  not  have  come  into  play.  To  prove  this,  all 
circumstances  bearing  on  the  case  must  be  carefully  weighed 
and  valued,  not  only  one  after  another  and  taken  by  itself, 
but  also  in  their  cumulative  force.  Where  all  the  circum- 
stances point  in  one  direction,  it  would  be  supremely  unrea- 
sonable to  look  for  the  explanation  of  the  cure  in  another  one. 
A  shallow,  though  specious  enough,  objection  basing  itself 
on  the  impossibility  of  setting  limits  to  nature's  hidden  powers, 
insists  that  it  is  impossible  to  decide  whether  a  given  effect  is 
beyond  these  powers.^  To  this  we  reply  that  though  we  may  be 
unable  to  define  the  limits  of  Nature,  such  limits  certainly  exist. 

»Cf.  Mill:  Three  Essays  on  Religion  (New  York,  1874),  p.  230.  "Ac- 
cordingly, when  we  hear  of  a  prodigy,  we  always,  in  these  modern  times, 
believe  that  if  it  really  occurred,  it  was  neither  the  work  of  God  nor  of  a 
demon,  but  the  consequence  of  some  unknown  natural  law  or  of  some 
hidden  fact." 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  219 

Supernatural  intervention  is,  therefore,  always  possible,  and  in 
given  cases  it  is  possible,  by  evidence  both  positive  and  negative, 
to  estabhsh  beyond  reasonable  doubt  the  natural  or  super- 
natural character  of  a  work  or  event. 

A  fact  must  always  be  distinguished  from  its  explanations. 
The  marvelous  character  of  a  cure  can  be  obvious,  when  it  is 
not  at  all  obvious  to  what  the  cure  itself  is  to  be  ascribed.  Is 
it  trickery?  Is  it  an  effect  of  some  unexplored  natural  law? 
Is  it  some  demon  that  interferes  in  human  affairs,  or  is  it  God 
who  thus  manifests  His  power?  All  these  are  possibiHties  that 
cannot  be  simply  dismissed.  Yet,  withal,  it  must  be  plain 
to  any  one  that  is  willing  to  see,  that  circumstantial  evidence 
may  favor  one  of  these  possibilities  to  such  an  extent  as  to 
render  the  others  untenable,  and  that  when  indications  accumu- 
late and  all  converge  to  one  solution,  a  practical  certainty  is 
reached  which  bars  all  prudent  doubt.  How  often  is  a  criminal 
convicted  on  circumstantial  evidence  alone,  and  yet,  no  one 
believes  that  justice  has  miscarried,  precisely  because  circum- 
stantial evidence  has  carried  conviction.  So  in  many  practical 
affairs  of  life,  not  merely  in  the  natural,  but  also  in  the  super- 
natural order,  circumstantial  evidence  must  point  the  way. 

We  must  be  satisfied  with  tracing  the  great  lines  of  what 
is  distinctive  in  Christ's  works  in  contrast  with  the  works  of 
His  would-be  imitators,  developing  a  little  more  at  length  only 
such  arguments  as  are  likely  to  prove  the  more  cogent  for  our 
present  purpose.  Three  lines  of  argument  may  be  pursued. 
Some,  convinced  that  organic  disease  is  not  directly  amenable 
to  psychic  or  mental  influence,  center  their  proof  on  the  fact 
that  at  least  some  of  the  diseases  reported  cured  by  Christ  were 
surely  of  an  organic  nature.^  Others  find  in  a  minute  examina- 
tion of  the  reported  cures  sufficient  ground  to  differentiate  them 
from  mental   cures   and   to   pronounce  them  miraculous   and 

*  Cf.  Joyce,  op.  cit.,  chap.  IV,  Miracles  and  Faith-Healing.  Davies,  E. 
O.:  The  Miracles  of  Jesus,  a  study  of  the  evidence  (London,  1913),  pp. 
75-81.  "The  conclusion  we  reach,  then,  is  that  there  is  no  direct  evidence 
that  the  cures  attributed  to  Jesus  were  as  a  class  wrought  psychothera- 
peutically,  and  there  is  no  direct  and  unquestionable  evidence  that  the 
diseases  which  he  is  said  to  have  cured  were  of  such  a  kind  as  to  be 
amenable  to  psychotherapeutic  treatment"  (p.  80). 


220  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

divine,  while  a  third  one  will  rest  confidently  on  the  judgment 
of  Christ  Himself,  his  apostles  and  their  contemporaries,  and 
the  witness  of  the  early  Church.^ 

These  arguments  are  all  valuable  each  one  in  its  own  way. 
The  first  one  would  probably  appeal  more  to  physicians  whose 
medical  knowledge  enables  them  to  draw  hard  and  fast  lines 
between  organic  and  merely  functional  diseases.  Scientific 
opinion  which  a  few  decades  ago  seemed  to  swing  towards  con- 
ceding to  the  mind  a  direct  influence  even  over  organic  diseases, 
now  seems  to  have  swung  back,  even  among  nerve  specialists,  to 
a  more  conservative  view.    In  the  words  of  Father  Joyce, 

"It  may  be  safely  said  that  virtually  the  whole  medical 
profession  is  agreed  that  there  is  not  a  jot  of  positive  evi- 
dence that  suggestion,  whether  hypnotic  or  otherwise,  can  do 
anything  to  remedy  an  organic  lesion ;  that,  on  the  contrary, 
all  the  evidence  hitherto  produced  goes  to  show  that  its  cura- 
tive effects  are  strictly  limited  to  functional  derangements."  ^ 

Against  this  argument  it  might  be  urged  that  it  will  be  a 
long  time  before  mind  healers  will  be  willing  to  concede  this  re- 
striction on  their  trade.  They  continue  to  maintain  with  all 
the  sureness  of  a  conviction  born  of  faith  and  interest  that 
organic  diseases  are  not  outside  the  range  of  mental  influence. 
Add  to  this  that  the  average  man  is  not  properly  equipped  to 
draw  a  clear  distinction  between  organic  and  functional  dis- 
orders, and  it  will  be  seen  that*  the  argument  though  it  keeps  its 
objective  value  loses  much  of  its  practical  usefulness. 

The  second  argument  is  more  within  reach  of  everybody  and 
cannot  fail  to  create  a  profound  impression.  Compare  one  by 
one  the  miracles  of  Christ  with  verified  cures  of  either  the  com- 
mon mind  healer  or  of  the  scientific  psychotherapist,  observe 
not  only  the  nature  of  the  disease  and  the  fact  of  its  cure,  but 
also  the  method  of  the  healing  process,  the  swiftness  of  the 
cure,  and  the  degree  of  its  stability,  as  well  as  any  other  cir- 
cumstance which  may  have  a  bearing  on  the  case,  and  you  are 

*  Cf.  Joyce,  op.  cit.,  pp.  43-53.  Davies,  op.  cit.,  pp.  75  ff .  Mackenzie,  in 
Medicine  and  the  Church  (London,  1910).  Le  Bee,  Preuves  MMicales  du 
Miracle  (Paris,  1921). 

'Cf.  Joyce,  op.  cit.,  p.  49. 


The  New  Movement  Versiis  Miracles  221 

enabled  to  form  your  own  opinion  which,  if  unbiased,  cannot  but 
be  favorable  to  the  supernatural  character  of  Christ's  works. 
An  unbiased  attitude  is,  of  course,  impossible,  when,  consciously 
or  unconsciously,  one  undertakes  this  investigation  with  the  un- 
philosophical  principle  that  miracles  are  impossible  and,  there- 
fore, non-existent,  or  that  in  any  case  no  testimony  concerning 
any  so-called  miraculous  fact  is  deserving  of  credence.  One 
needs  for  this  work  that  fairness  of  spirit  which  we  expect  in  all 
human  concerns  and  which  will  not  allow  the  judgment  to  be 
warped  for  fear  of  the  foreseen  consequences,  A  prejudiced 
mind  can  only  pass  a  prejudiced  judgment  and  thus  it  wrongs 
both  itself  and  the  subject-matter  with  which  it  deals. 

Easier  than  both  of  these  and  no  less  effective  is  the  third 
method  to  which  we  shall  devote  a  little  more  space,  the  more 
so  as  the  first  two  methods  have  more  frequently  been  developed 
in  detail.  What  is  Christ's  own  judgment  concerning  His  cures.? 
In  what  light  did  the  early  Christians  and  their  contemporaries 
contemplate  them?  Such  is  the  problem.  The  solution  must 
lie  in  an  examination  of  the  documents  we  possess.  The  advan- 
tage we  expect  to  derive  therefrom  is  this,  that  Christ's  author- 
ity cannot  easily  be  set  aside.  Though  His  divinity  is  called 
into  question  by  all  rationalizers,  yet  even  among  them  they 
that  would  impugn  his  moral  rectitude  are  very  few.  His  own 
testimony,  therefore,  desei-ves  the  very  greatest  consideration* 
For  large  classes  of  people  it  must  constitute  a  supreme  argu- 
ment; for  all  but  such  as  are  prepared  to  class  Christ  among 
the  greatest  frauds  of  history,  it  must  be  of  great  weight. 

To  know  what  Christ  thought  of  His  miracles  is  paramount 
in  our  problem.  Only  secondary  to  this  in  importance  is  the 
testimony  of  His  apostles  and  contemporaries.  After  all,  it  is 
their  witnessing  to  which  all  modern  authors  must  refer.  If 
we  cannot  beheve  their  account  of  the  impression  Christ's 
miracles  created  in  those  times,  how  can  we  believe  their  testi- 
mony concerning  the  miracles  themselves.''  And  if,  basing  our- 
selves on  the  inadmissibility  of  true  miracles,  we  reject  at  the 
very  outset  anything  that  cannot  be  explained  naturally,  what 
belief  can  we  still  give  to  the  rest  of  the  Scriptures  ?  We  shall, 
therefore,  take  for  granted  the  historicity  of  the  gospel  narra- 


222  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

tives  in  their  entirety,  and  judge  of  Christ's  signs  and  wonders 
in  this  new  "old"  light. 

ni 

"When  we  hear  of  a  prodigy,  we  always,  in  these  modern 
times,  believe  that  if  it  really  occurred,  it  was  neither  the 
work  of  God  nor  of  a  demon,  but  the  consequence  of  some 
unknown  natural  law  or  of  some  hidden  fact."  ^ 

These  words  of  John  Stuart  Mill,  written  long  ago,  have 
since  become  the  creed  of  vast  numbers  of  men.  It  forestalls  any 
kind  of  reasoning  for  it  appeals  to  what  is  unknown.  Because 
of  its  finality  it  proves  an  effective  bar  to  all  inquiries  into  the 
truth  of  the  facts  that  are  reported  miraculous  and  into  the 
character  of  these  facts.  Nay,  it  is  even  maintained  that  those 
who  base  their  lives  on  the  historical  truth  of  Christ's  miracles 
strangely  misread  the  mind  of  Christ;  that  Christ  never  in- 
tended his  works  to  be  marks  of  His  mission,  and  that  in  the 
early  ages  they  never  were  considered  such.  To  quote  the  same 
essay  of  John  Stuart  Mill: 

"No  one  thought  it  worth  while  to  contradict  any  alleged 
miracles,  because  it  was  the  belief  of  the  age  that  miracles  in 
themselves  proved  nothing,  since  they  could  be  worked  by  a 
lying  spirit  as  well  as  by  the  Spirit  of  God."  ^ 

This  statement  is  a  most  gratuitous  assertion  as  we  shall 
forthwith  show. 

No  one  that  has  ever  read  the  Gospel  according  to  St.  John 
can  truthfully  maintain  that  in  the  days  of  St.  John  Christ's 
miracles  were  discounted.  The  author  himself  announces  at 
the  end  of  his  Gospel  the  purpose  of  his  work  to  be  to  bring 
people  to  Christ  by  reporting  some  of  His  miracles  and  sayings. 
"Many  other  signs  also  did  Jesus  in  the  sight  of  His  disciples 
which  are  not  written  in  this  book;  but  these  are  written 
that  you  may  believe  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of 
God   and  that  believing  you  may  have  life  in   His   name."  ^ 

*Mill:  Three  Essays  on  Religion,  p.  230. 

*Ibid.,  p.  237. 

"John   20:30-31    and   Isa.   53:1. 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  223 

To  show  by  Christ's  miracles  that  Christ  was  the  promised 
Messias  and  the  Son  of  God ;  such,  in  brief,  was  his  object,  which 
he  pursued  by  appealing  to  the  testimony  of  both  Christ  and 
His  contemporaries,  and  by  contrasting  favorably  the  attitude 
of  the  masses  with  that  of  the  higher  classes.  Many  of  the 
former  believed,  because  they  said  to  themselves:  "When  the 
Christ  Cometh,  shall  He  do  more  miracles  than  these  which  this 
man  doth?''  ^  This  plain,  open,  almost  intuitive  judgment  of 
the  common  man  places  in  high  relief  the  sombre  unbelief  of  the 
erudite  Scribe  and  the  punctilious  Pharisee  whose  self-sufficiency 
and  class  pride  were  an  insurmountable  barrier  to  any  act  of 
faith.  "Whereas  He  had  done  so  many  miracles  before  them, 
they  believed  not  in  Him,  that  the  saying  of  Isaias,  the  prophet, 
might  be  fulfilled  which  he  said:  'Lord,  who  hath  believed  our 
hearing,  and  to  whom  hath  the  arm  of  the  Lord  been  re- 
vealed.?'"^ But  though  they  failed  to  believe,  they  could  not 
fail  to  be  impressed  with  the  mighty  works  of  the  Savior.  For 
we  read :  "The  chief  priests,  therefore,  and  the  Pharisees,  gath- 
ered a  council  and  said :  'What  do  we ;  for  this  man  doth  many 
miracles?  If  we  let  him  alone  so,  all  will  believe  in  him,  and 
the  Romans  will  come  and  take  away  our  place  and  nation.'  "  ^ 
This  attitude  of  interested  opposition  has  not  changed  much  in 
the  course  of  the  ages.  But  whatever  else  unbelievers  may  say 
in  their  self-defense,  they  cannot  truthfully  plead  that  Christ 
did  not  propose  His  miracles  as  signs  to  lead  men  into  the  truth 
of  the  Gospel. 

"I  speak  to  you,"  he  told  them  plainly,  "and  you  believe 
not.  The  works  that  I  do  in  the  name  of  my  Father,  they 
give  testimony  of  me ;  but  you  do  not  believe  because  you  are 
not  of  my  sheep.  ...  If  I  do  not  the  works  of  my  Father, 
believe  me  not;  but  if  I  do,  though  you  will  not  believe  me, 
believe  the  works,  that  you  may  know  and  believe  that  the 
Father  is  in  me  and  I  in  the  Father."  * 

These  citations  might  be  multiplied  without  adding  substan- 
tially to  the  strength  of  the  argument.     We  reason  thus :   The 

*John    7:31.     Cf.    10:41. 

Uhid.,    12:37. 

^Ihid.,   11:47. 

*Ihid.,  10;25  and  37.    Cf.  Ibid.,  5:36. 


224  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Gospel  of  St.  John  fully  refutes  the  assertion,  ignorantly  made 
and  ignorantly  repeated,  that  miracles  did  not  serve  in  the  be- 
ginning as  credentials  not  only  of  Christ's  Divine  mission,  but 
also  of  His  Divinity.  It  is  mainly  on  the  strength  of  these 
works  that  people  accepted  His  teaching  with  regard  both  to 
moral  precepts  and  to  Himself.  Christ  knew  of  this  impression 
made  by  His  cures  and  encouraged  it.  But  if  these  works  were, 
not  supernatural,  they  but  proved  that  Christ  was  naturally 
endowed  with  remarkable  healing  powers.  In  that  case.  He  ex- 
acted belief  in  Himself  under  false  pretenses.  Either,  there- 
fore, we  must  cease  to  look  upon  Him  as  the  ambassador  of  God, 
or  we  must  admit  that  His  reported  cures  were  more  than 
faith  cures. 

To  this  it  will  probably  be  objected  that  we  cannot  accept 
St.  John's  Gospel  as  historical ;  that  it  is  theology,  the  work  of 
a  believer,  a  mystic  and  a  propagandist,  but  not  of  a  historian. 
This  we  deny ;  but  even  where  granted,  the  argument  would  still 
show  in  what  light  Christ's  miracles  were  received  at  that  time. 
But  lest  any  suspicion  to  this  effect  should  weaken  our  con- 
clusion, we  will  show  that  the  three  Synoptic  Gospels,  no  less 
than  St.  John,  make  Christ's  miracles  basic  of  His  whole  reli- 
gion. Friend  and  foe  acknowledged  their  preternatural  char- 
acter, the  former,  to  rejoice  in  them  as  evident  signs  of  God's 
goodness  to  men;  the  latter,  to  discredit  them  as  the  work  of 
unclean  spirits. 

"Every  kingdom,  divided  against  itself,  shall  be  made 
desolate,"  our  Lord  replied  to  the  latter  imputation,  "and 
every  house  or  city,  divided  against  itself,  shall  not  stand. 
And  if  Satan  cast  out  Satan,  he  is  divided  against  himself, 
how,  then,  shall  his  kingdom  stand.  .  .  .  But  if  I  by  the 
Spirit  of  God  cast  out  devils,  then  is  the  Kingdom  of  God 
come  upon  you."  ^ 

No  one  that  is  not  blinded  by  prejudice  can  fail  to  get  the 
import  of  Christ's  words.  He  plainly  points  to  the  supernat- 
ural origin  of  His  works  as  credentials  to  His  mission.  He  goes 
further:  refusal  to  see  the  finger  of  God  in  the  works  of  God 

»Matt.  12;25-28,  31-3^, 


The  New  MovcTnent  Versus  Miracles  %%f^ 

he  does  not  attribute  to  lack  of  discernment  in  his  hearers,  but 
stigmatizes  as  the  sin  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  shall  be 
forgiven  neither  in  this  world  nor  in  the  world  to  come. 

Instructive  is  the  answer  Christ  gave  to  the  messengers  of 
St.  John  the  Baptist,  who  had  come  to  inquire  whether  He  was 
"the  one  that  was  to  come,  or  whether  they  should  look  for  an- 
other." He  refers  them  to  the  prophets,  to  His  own  works 
and  to  the  marvelous  harmony  that  existed  between  prophecy 
and  fulfillment: 

"Go  and  relate  to  John  what  you  have  heard  and  seen: 
'The  blind  see,  the  lame  walk,  the  lepers  are  cleansed,  the  deaf 
hear,  the  dead  rise  again,  the  poor  have  the  gospel  preached 
to  them.'  And,  blessed  is  he  that  shall  not  be  scandalized  in 
Me."  1 

Finally,  if  there  could  be  any  doubt  at  all  concerning  the 
importance  of  miracles  as  proofs  of  Christ's  divine  mission  and 
concerning  its  synoptical  record,  the  woes  pronounced  upon  the 
towns  and  cities  of  Galilee  would  surely  remove  it. 

"Then  began  He  to  upbraid  the  cities  wherein  were  done 
the  most  of  His  miracles,  for  that  they  had  not  done  pen- 
ance. Woe  to  thee,  Corozain!  Woe  to  thee,  Bethsaida!  for 
if  in  Tyre  and  Sidon  had  been  wrought  the  miracles  that  have 
been  wrought  in  you,  they  had  long  ago  done  penance  in 
sackcloth  and  ashes.  But  I  say  unto  you,  it  shall  be  more 
tolerable  for  Tyre  and  Sidon  in  the  day  of  judgment  than 
for  you.  And  thou,  Capharnaum !  Shalt  thou  be  exalted  up 
to  heaven?  Thou  shalt  go  down  even  unto  hell.  For  if  in 
Sodom  had  been  wrought  the  miracles  that  have  been  wrought 
in  thee,  perhaps  it  had  remained  unto  this  day.  But  I  say 
unto  you,  that  it  shall  be  more  tolerable  for  the  land  of 
Sodom  in  the  day  of  judgment  than  for  thee."  ^ 

How  could  Jesus  have  resorted  to  such  vehement  and  terrific 
vituperations,  if  His  works  were  no  more  than  ordinary  mind- 
cures.^  How  could  we  still  believe  in  His  honesty,  if,  on  the 
false  pretenses  of  supernatural  powers,  He  demanded  on  the 

^Matt.    11:4-5. 
Uhid.,   11:20-24. 


226  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

part  of  the  people  faith  in  Himself  and  in  His  work?  How,  in 
fine,  could  we  explain  such  statements  of  fact  made  by  the 
evangelists  as  that  "His  fame  spread  throughout  Syria,"  that 
"much  people  followed  Him  from  Galilee  and  from  Decapolis 
and  from  Jerusalem  and  from  Judea  and  from  beyond  the 
Jordan,"  and  that  ^^they  presented  to  Him  all  sicJc  people  that 
were  taken  with  divers  diseases  and  torments,  omd  such  as  were 
possessed  hy  devils,  and  lunatics  and  those  that  had  the  palsy, 
and  He  cured  them  all^  ^  His  fame  reached  the  ears  even  of 
the  civil  magistrates,  and  the  superstitious  Herod  dreaded  lest 
John  whom  he  had  beheaded  had  risen  from  the  dead :  "This  is 
John  the  Baptist.  He  is  risen  from  the  dead,  and,  therefore, 
mighty  works  show  themselves  in  him."  ^  Later  on,  when  fa- 
vored through  the  cowardice  rather  than  the  courtesy  of  Pilate 
with  a  personal  interview  with  this  famous  wonder  worker,  he 
was  "very  glad ;  for  he  was  desirous  for  a  long  time  to  see  Him, 
because  he  had  heard  many  things  of  Him,  and  he  hoped  to  see 
some  sign  wrought  by  Him."  ^ 

If  it  could  be  shown  that  all  these  cures  in  reality  were  noth- 
ing but  mind-cures,  not  essentially  different  from  those  which 
faith-healers  have  wrought  at  all  times,  we  would  as  a  matter  of 
course,  surrender  our  judgment  to  evidence.  But  those  who 
have  tried  to  prove  such  a  relationship  have  never  been  able 
to  do  so  without  doing  violence  to  the  sacred  texts.  In  order  to 
be  free  to  select  arbitrarily  such  miracles  as  may  prove  their 
contentions  with  a  certain  show  of  probability,  they  must  tam- 
per with  the  documents  until  these  yield  exactly  what  is  wanted 
of  them.  Schmiedel  in  the  Encyclopedia  Biblica  is  not  ashamed 
to  lay  down  as  a  fundamental  rule  of  exegesis  with  regard  to 
the  facts  now  under  discussion  that  "only  those  of  the  class 
which  even  at  the  present  day  physicians  are  able  to  effect  by 
psychological  methods"  are  historical.  With  this  arbitrary 
rule  it  is  easy  to  prove  anything,  because  it  enables  the  sup- 
posedly objective  critic  to  choose  among  the  facts  just  those 
that  prove  his  point  and  to  reject  all  the  others  as  unhistorical. 

»Matt.  5:24-25. 
^Ibid.,  14:2.  . 
»Luke  23:2. 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  227 

Of  forty-six  references  to  miracles  and  miraculous  powers 
enumerated  by  Mr.  Davies  as  found  in  the  gospel  narratives, 
the  higher  critics  rule  out  all  but  eleven  which  are  found  in  the 
'triple  tradition'  of  the  three  Synoptics.  The  oft-repeated 
assertion  that  Christ  wrought  many  miracles  is  dismissed  as  an 
unjustifiable  generalization  >  on  the  part  of  the  evangelists. 
The  other  thirty-four  references  are  just  as  summarily  dealt 
with.  Eleven  cases  remain;  but  even  these  are  hardly  pliant 
enough  for  their  purposes.  Interj5retation,  however,  knows  how 
to  deal  with  these.  Take,  for  instance,  the  case  of  the  raising  of 
the  daughter  of  Jairus,  which  belongs  to  the  triple  tradition. 
All  the  evangelists  assert  that  the  girl  was  really  dead  when 
Christ  arrived  at  the  house;  but  this  the  modern  exegetes  will 
not  and  cannot  admit  and,  consequently,  speak  of  this  case  as 
one  of  "reanimation  at  the  point  of  death."  ^  Such  methods 
make  explaining  easy,  and  worthless. 

For  a  more  detailed  study  Drs.  Worcester  and  McComb 
select  the  case  of  the  man  stricken  with  the  palsy.  It  is  a  typi- 
cal example  of  how  the  higher  critics  manipulate  the  simple 
statements  of  the  gospels : 

"In  the  story  before  us,"  they  tell  us,  "it  is  said  that 
Jesus  seeing  their  faith  proceeded  to  pronounce  his  absolu- 
tion. First,  and  mainly,  perhaps,  our  attention  is  called  to 
the  faith  of  the  sick  man's  friends.  The  patient,  then,  has 
been  for  some  time  living  in  an  atmosphere  of  faith.  The  re- 
ports of  Christ's  healing  work  have  reached  his  companions 
and  have  stirred  them  to  hope  and  trust.  This  very  hope 
and  trust  have  created  a  psychological  atmosphere  favorable 
to  the  sufferer's  eventual  recovery.  Moreover,  it  has  tended 
to  awaken  faith  in  the  patient  himself.  As  in  the  case  of  the 
daughter  of  Jairus,  Christ  feels  Himself  mighty  in  an  at- 
mosphere free  from  doubt  and  fear.  We  can  see,  too,  how 
a  strong  faith  on  the  part  of  this  unhappy  man  was  devel- 
oped. The  very  fact  that  he  allowed  his  friends  to  carry  him 
to  Christ  showed  that  faith  had  already  germinated  in  his 
heart.  Every  element  in  the  strange  and  never-to-be-forgot- 
ten scene  in  which  he  is  to  be  for  the  moment  the  central 
figure  was  calculated  to  develop  this  germ,  to  affect'  power- 
*  Worcester-McComb:  Religion  and  Medicine  (New  York,  1908),  p.  345. 


S28  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

fully  his  imagination,  and  to  arouse  all  his  slumbering  moral 
forces.  .  .  .  All  this  must  have  tended  to  create  expectant 
attention,  faith,  confidence,  hope — the  psychical  conditions 
of  a  cure.  We  conclude,  then,  that  the  miraculousness  of 
Christ's  healing  power  did  not  consist  in  his  refusal  to  use 
secondary  causes,  but  rather  in  the  Divine  Love  and  grace 
which  moved  Him  to  His  cures,  and  which  His  cures  symbol- 
ized to  the  spiritually  susceptible  mind."  ^ 

The  whole  process  is  very  simple.  Forsooth,  there  is  hardly 
any  need  of  Christ  at  all,  so  automatically  does  the  cure  t  ifect 
itself  through  the  mind  of  the  patient.  Yet,  it  seems  rather 
strange  that  while  faith  was  all  along  active  in  this  mind,  the 
cure  awaited  the  word  of  command,  "Arise,  take  up  thy  bed 
and  walk,"  and  then  was  sudden  and  complete.  Do  the  modem 
mind-healers  thus  cure  their  patients.?  Previously  to  this,  the 
sick  man  had  been  told,  "Thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee";  after 
that  occurred  incidentally  a  discussion  with  the  Pharisees 
bearing  on  the  powers  of  the  Son  of  Man,  during  which  discus- 
sion the  man  remained  sick  awaiting  the  word  that  would  cure 
him.  On  the  command  of  Christ,  the  man  arose,  took  up  his 
bed  and  walked.  Is  it  really  expected  of  us  that  we  should  be- 
lieve this  cure  to  be  entirely  due  to  the  faith  of  this  man  ?  And 
does  it  make  no  difference  to  the  higher  critics  that  Jesus  ex- 
pressly worked  this  miracle  to  prove  that  He  had  authority 
on  earth  to  forgive  sin?  With  these  remarks  in  mind,  the  ex- 
planation of  the  rationalists  must  be  pronounced  entirely  un- 
satisfactory, as  it  simply  would  inflict  on  Christ  the  stigma  of 
a  vulgar  cheat.  It  may  be  very  simple,  but  it  is  not  very  con- 
vincing. 

What  should  be  decisive  against  all  attempts  at  a  natural- 
istic explanation  is  the  fact  that  Christ  made  no  distinction 
between  various  forms  of  disease.  All  evangelists  are  emphatic 
on  this  point.  After  healing  St.  Peter's  mother-in-law.  He 
cured  all  that  were  brought  to  Him:  "And  when  the  sun  was 
down,  all  they  that  had  any  sick  with  divers  diseases  brought 
them  to  Him.  But  He  laying  His  hands  on  every  one  of  them, 
healed  them.     And  devils  went  out  from  many,  crying  out  and 

*Worcester-McComb:  op.  cit.,  p.  353. 


The  New  Movement  Verstis  Miracles  ^29 

saying:  'Thou  art  the  Son  of  God.'"  ^  St.  Matthew  relates 
that  "Jesus  went  about  all  the  cities  and  towns,  teaching  in 
their  synagogues,  and  preaching  the  gospel  of  the  Kingdom,  and 
healing  every  disease  and  every  infirmity."  And  again :  "There 
came  to  Him  great  multitudes,  having  with  them  the  dumb,  the 
blind,  the  lame,  the  maimed,  and  many  others ;  and  they  cast 
them  down  at  His  feet,  and  He  healed  them,  so  that  the  multi- 
tudes marveled,  seeing  the  dumb  speak,  the  lame  walk,  the 
blind  see."  ^ 

Finally,  let  it  not  be  forgotten  that  our  records  present 
Christ,  not  only  as  healing  the  sick,  but  as  having  power  over  all 
Nature.  The  elements  were  submissive  to  Him;  He  changed 
water  into  wine,  multiplied  the  bread,  walked  on  the  sea,  stilled 
the  tempest,  and  did  many  things  which  under  those  circum- 
stances were  perfectly  miraculous.  The  veracity  of  Christ 
and  of  His  apostles  is  at  stake.  The  critics  will  either  have 
to  admit  the  miraculous  character  of  their  works,  or  return  to 
the  bolder,  more  irreverent,  but  more  logical  views  of  the  ear- 
lier opponents  of  Christianity,  who  did  not  hesitate  to  call  the 
veracity  of  the  sacred  writers  into  question. 

We  may  now  sum  up  our  conclusions  by  asserting  that 
hypothesis  has  succeeded  hypothesis,  but  all  have  proved  futile 
and  unsatisfactory  to  account  for  the  miraculous  element  in  the 
gospels.  None  of  them  has  stood  the  test  of  time.  True,  as 
long  as  it  is  maintained  that  miracles  do  not,  because  they  can- 
not, happen,  it  will  still  be  necessary  to  resort  to  one  or  the 
other  of  these  hypotheses.  One  thing,  however,  should  be  be- 
yond dispute,  that  if  we  do  not  alter  the  gospel  narrative,  the 
cures  there  recorded  are  undoubtedly  true  miracles.  Mr.  E.  O. 
Davies  in  his  interesting  study  on  the  miracles  of  Christ,  puts 
the  problem  that  confronts  us  as  follows : 

"Taking  the  narratives  as  they  stand,"  he  writes,  "with- 
out modifying  them  in  the  least,  have  we  a  right  to  say  that 
the  alleged  cures  are  no  longer  miracles?  Do  our  narratives 
describe  what  is  still  marvelous  for  us  to-day,  or  can  they 
bear,  exactly  as  they  stand,  a  psychotherapeutic  construc- 
tion?" 

*  Luke  4:40-41. 

'Matt.  9:35,  and  15:30-31. 


S30  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

This  question  he  answers,  on  the  whole,  in  favor  of  the 
miraculous  character  of  Christ's  cures. 

"In  nearly  all  the  cases,"  he  concludes,  "where  the  at- 
tempt has  been  made  to  eliminate  the  miraculous  from  nar- 
ratives of  special  miracles,  the  result  has  been  obtained 
through  modifying  the  record.  In  one  case  only  does  Keim 
in  his  Jesu  von  Nazara  succeed  in  lending  plausibility  to  the 
psychotherapeutic  explanation  of  special  miracles  without 
toning  down  the  language  used  by  the  evangelists  to  describe 
the  complaint.   ..." 

Then  Mr.  Davies  continues: 

"It  will  be  well  for  us  at  this  point  to  indicate  clearly 
the  miraculous  element  present  in  the  narratives.  .  .  .  Take 
the  first  class :  healings  of  bodily  ailments.  A  certain  noble- 
man's son  was  sick  of  fever  and  was  described  as  dying.  Je- 
sus healed  him  by  a  word  spoken  at  a  distance.  Simon's 
wife's  mother  suffered  from  a  great  fever.  Jesus  rebuked  the 
fever  and  it  left  her.  Psoriasis  or  Elephantiasis  Grcecorum — 
it  matters  not  which  for  our  present  purpose — is  healed  by 
a  touch  and  a  word.  Congenital  blindness  is  cured  by  rub- 
bing the  eyes  with  clay,  the  sufferer  afterwards  washing  in 
the  pool  of  Siloam.  A  case  of  infirmity  of  eighteen  years' 
standing  was  cured  by  a  word  and  a  touch.  A  man,  suffer- 
ing from  dropsy,  was  healed  instantaneously.  One  of  the 
disciples  smote  the  servant  of  the  highpriest  and  struck  off 
his  ear.     Jesus  touched  his  ear  and  healed  him. 

"Consider  next  the  second  class :  healings  of  nervous  dis- 
eases. A  helpless  paralytic  was  cured  by  a  command.  A 
man  with  a  withered  hand,  also,  was  healed  forthwith  by  a 
command.  A  case  of  paralysis,  in  which  the  patient  is  de- 
scribed as  being  at  the  point  of  death,  was  cured  at  a  dis- 
tance. 

"There  is  further  the  third  class:  healings  of  nervous 
and  psychical  disorders.  Demoniacs  were  cured  of  aggra- 
vated forms  of  epilepsy  and  mania  by  a  command  or  a  re- 
buke. In  all  these  cases,  taking  the  narratives  as  we  find 
them,  we  have  present  a  miraculous  element.  The  events  be- 
longing to  the  other  four  classes  above  enumerated  ^  are  all 

*  These  other  four  classes  are:   (1)    revelations  of  power  in  the  nature 
of  Christ    (walking  on  the  sea);    (2)    revelation  of  Jesus  in  nature  and 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  231 

miracles.  No  mere  exegesis  of  the  narratives  can  remove  the 
impression  that  they  describe  what  is  still  marvelous  for  us 
to-day. 

"Speaking,  generally,  then,  the  records  as  they  stand  are 
miraculous  in  character.  And  this  being  so,  it  is  fair  to  sup- 
pose, that  the  evangelists  did  not  regard  differently  those 
narratives,  whose  face  value  can  be  claimed  to  be  not  incon- 
sistent with  a  psychotherapeutic  explanation."  ^ 

It  is  useless  to  spend  more  time  on  this  matter.  Any  un- 
prejudiced student  must  come  to  these  conclusions: 

1.  Christ  makes  no  distinction  between  curable  and  incur- 
able diseases,  but  heals  them  all  with  equal  facility. 

2.  No  visible  remedy  is  employed  that  could  account  for 
these  cures.  Nor  does  Jesus  resort  to  the  methods  of  the  hyp- 
notists or  faith-healers.  If,  on  a  few  occasions,  the  cure  is 
accompanied  with  certain  ceremonies,  like  the  touch  of  the  hand, 
the  application  of  clay,  or  the  anointing  with  oil,  these  have  no 
direct  physical  bearing  on  the  ailment,  but  convey  some  sym- 
bolical meaning,  teach  some  moral  lesson,  or  prepare  perhaps 
the  institution  of  some  sacrament.  In  any  case,  the  means  em- 
ployed are  not  of  such  a  nature  that  they  could  materially  con- 
tribute to  the  cure. 

3.  The  faith  which  Jesus  ordinarily  asks  of  those  whom 
He  heals  is  not  that  of  the  modern  mind-healers,  but  a  faith 
in  His  own  Divine  mission.  This,  of  course,  implied  the  faith 
in  His  power  to  heal ;  but  of  itself  it  was  no  guarantee  that  the 
cure  would  infallibly  take  place.  There  is  no  indication  what- 
ever that  the  faith  demanded  by  Christ  was  anything  similar 
to  the  understanding  of  the  unreality  of  disease,  which  Mrs. 
Eddy  exacts  as  the  essential  requisite  for  any  complete  cure. 

4.  The  cures  of  Jesus  were  instantaneous,  and  lasting. 
They  were  of  a  nature  to  be  observable  by  any  and  all  interested 
enough  to  investigate.  Christ  worked  them  in  public  anywhere 
and  everywhere.     They  furnished  the  chief  reason  why  people 

upon  the  organic  world    (draughts  of  fishes  and  stater  in  fish's  mouth)  ; 
(3)   power  upon  organic  world   (multiplied  loaves  and  fishes,  water  made 
wine,  fig-tree  withered)  ;   (4)  power  upon  the  inorganic  world   (stilling  of 
the  tempest). 
^Davies:  The  Miracles  of  Jesus  (London,  1913),  pp.  17-21. 


23^  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

flocked  to  Him  from  all  sides  and  followed  Him.  They  can- 
not, therefore,  be  simply  denied,  or  explained  away  by  those 
who  first  pervert  the  historical  records,  and,  then,  undertake 
to  show  how  easy  it  is  to  do  the  same  sort  of  works.  The  mir- 
acles of  Christ,  in  spite  of  the  many  attempts  to  do  so,  have 
not  been  disproved,  but,  on  the  contrary,  stand  out  in  bolder 
relief  when  brought  out  in  correlation  with  the  cures  of  the 
mind-healers. 

IV 

A  few  words  must  be  added  concerning  the  gift  of  miracles 
in  the  Church.  That  Christ  has  promised  this  gift  to  His 
disciples  cannot  be  gainsaid: 

"These  signs  shall  follow  them  that  believe.  In  My  Name 
they  shall  cast  out  devils ;  they  shall  speak  with  new  tongues ; 
they  shall  take  up  serpents,  and,  if  they  shall  drink  any 
deadly  thing,  it  shall  not  hurt  them.  They  shall  lay  their 
hands  upon  the  sick,  and  they  shall  recover."  ^ 

That  the  apostles  and  others  of  the  earlier  disciples  exer- 
cised these  powers,  is  a  matter  of  history.  That  the  promise 
was  not  limited  to  them,  but  was  to  be  permanent  and  a  char- 
acteristic sign  of  the  society  of  believers  in  the  Church  through- 
out the  ages,  has  been  the  common  belief  of  the  Church  from 
the  beginning  and  is  based  on  Scriptural  testimony.  But  that 
this  gift  of  healing  was  to  be  institutional  in  the  sense  that  a 
certain  class  of  men  should  be  regularly,  or  even  temporarily, 
endowed  with  it,  is  an  unwarrantable  inference.  Still  more 
unwarranted  is  the  claim  that  all  true  believers  must  possess 
immunity  from  material  harm  and  the  power  of  restoring  the 
health  of  others.  If  Christ's  words  are  to  be  taken  in  this  ultra- 
literal  sense,  they  must  be  taken  so  in  their  entirety,  and,  then, 
we  may  well  challenge  all  mind-healers  to  prove  their  faith  by 
their  works.  Let  them  speak  with  new  tongues.  Let  them  take 
up  serpents ;  let  them  drink  some  deadly  thing :  if  they  remain 
unhurt,  then,  and  not  till  then,  will  we  be  willing  to  accept  their 
private  interpretation  of  this  passage  of  Holy  Writ. 

»Mark  16:17-18. 


The  New  Movement  Versus  Miracles  233 

But  now,  to  return  to  our  proposition:  we  claim  that  the 
gift  of  miracles  is  promised  to  the  true  Church,  and  that  it  is 
one  of  her  characteristics ;  that  there  has  been  no  age  from  the 
beginning  of  Christianity  when  miracles  have  been  wholly  ab- 
sent. This  is  not  an  endorsement  of  every  miraculous  narra- 
tive to  be  met  with  in  the  course  of  historical  reading.  Just  as 
real  coin  does  not  prevent  counterfeit  money  from  getting  into 
circulation,  until  it  is  suppressed,  and  just  as  the  existence  of 
counterfeit  money  does  not  disprove,  but  rather  proves  the 
existence  of  real  money,  so  the  existence  of  many,  not  suffi- 
ciently authenticated,  miraculous  narratives  cannot  be  adduced 
as  a  disproof  of  real  miraculous  cures. 

To  limit  ourselves  to  our  own  times,  we  may  safely  chal- 
lenge the  world  to  look  dispassionately  and  with  a  fair  and 
open  mind  into  the  events  at  Lourdes.  Here  we  have  works 
that  are  not  performed  in  a  corner,  but  are  open  to  the  investi- 
gation of  every  qualified  physician.  The  annals  of  Lourdes  go 
back  to  1868.  A  special  bureau  in  charge  of  a  physician  con- 
scientiously investigates  all  reported  cures.  The  history  of 
some  of  its  more  famous  cases  has  been  repeatedly  written.  The 
works  of  Henri  Lasserre  and  of  Dr.  Boissarie  are  well  known 
and  have  been  translated  into  many  languages.  The  Histoire 
Critique  des  Evenements  de  Lourdes,  by  the  abbe  Bertrin,  is  re- 
plete with  detailed  accounts  of  authentic  cures,  the  reality  of 
which  has  been  proved  beyond  the  possibility  of  a  doubt.  The 
English  reader  may  be  referred  to  Dr.  de  Grandmaison's  book 
entitled:  Twenty  Cures  at  Lourdes  Medically  Discussed,^  We 
may  particularly  recall  the  remarkable,  sudden  cure  of  Pierre 
de  Rudder  who  had  been  suffering  for  so  long  from  a  compound 
fracture  in  his  left  leg.^  Many  other  cases  are  scarcely  less 
remarkable.  But  to  enter  into  details  would  lead  us  too  far; 
we  can  only  refer  to  the  works  which  treat  professionally  of 
this  subject.  The  following  summary,  by  the  abbe  Bertrin, 
taken  from  the  Catholic  Encyclopedia,  must  suffice : 

"The  estimate  that  about  4000  cures  have  been  obtained 
at  Lourdes  within  the  first  fifty  years  of  the  pilgrimage  is 

1  Published  in  1912,  translated  in   1920. 
'Cf.  De  Grandmaison,  op.  cit.,  pp.  140-146. 


234  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

undoubtedly  considerably  less  than  the  actual  number.  The 
Bureau  des  Constatations  stands  near  the  shrine,  and  there 
are  recorded  and  checked  the  certificates  of  maladies,  and 
also  the  certificates  of  cure ;  it  is  free  to  all  physicians,  what- 
ever their  nationality  or  religious  belief.  Consequently,  on 
an  average,  from  two  to  three  hundred  physicians  annually 
visit  this  marvelous  clinic.  As  to  the  nature  of  the  diseases 
which  are  cured,  nervous  disorders,  so  frequently  mentioned, 
do  not  even  furnish  the  fourteenth  part  of  the  whole:  278 
have  been  counted  out  of  a  total  of  3962.  The  present  writer 
has  published  the  number  of  cases  of  each  disease  or  infir- 
mity, among  them  tuberculosis,  tumors,  sores,  cancers,  deaf- 
ness, blindness,  etc.  The  Annates  des  Sciences  Physiques,  a 
skeptical  review  whose  chief  editor  is  Dr.  Charles  Richet,  Pro- 
fessor of  the  medical  faculty  of  Paris,  said  in  the  course  of  a 
long  article,  apropos  of  this  faithful  study :  'On  reading  it, 
unprejudiced  minds  cannot  but  be  convinced  that  the  facts 
stated  are  authentic.^  "  ^ 

^Catholic  Encyclopedia,  vol.  IX,  p.  390,  art.  "Lourdes." 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE  LATEST  EVENTS  IN  CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE 

None  of  the  predictions  frequently  made  concerning  Chris- 
tian Science  either  that  it  would  soon  disintegrate  on  the  death 
of  the  Founder,  or  that,  on  the  contrary,  it  would  continue  its 
growth  by  leaps  and  bounds,  has  so  far  been  realized.  Indica- 
tions are  not  wanting,  however,  that  Christian  Science  has 
passed  the  zenith  of  its  strength  and  popularity.  Christian 
Science,  indeed,  continues  its  stormy  history  with  losses  and 
gains  to  be  recorded  pretty  much  in  the  same  way  as  before 
Mrs.  Eddy's  death  on  December  3,  1910;  yet,  at  present, 
destructive  forces  seem  to  be  more  in  evidence  than  its  less 
spectacular  constructive  work.  Even  a  hasty  glance  at  the 
latest  literature  issuing  from  their  ranks  will  prove  this  asser- 
tion. While  free  lectures  in  theaters  and  public  halls  continue 
to  be  given  by  members  of  the  Board  of  Lectureship  of  the 
Mother  Church,  and  while  works  appear  of  the  style  of  Mr. 
Hayes'  Tlie  Lady  in  Wliite^  whose  aim  is  "to  support  the  dis- 
coverer and  founder  of  Christian  Science,  Mary  Baker  Eddy, 
Pastor,  Poet,  Author,  who  was  and  is  in  her  real  selfhood  the 
Elect  Lady  of  the  Gospel,"  on  the  other  hand,  many  signs 
point  to  elements  of  revolt  against  Christian  Science  autocracy 
even  in  such  as  remain  loyally  devoted  to  Christian  Science 
principles.  We  refer  to  works  of  the  stamp  of  Mr.  Kratzer's 
The  Christicm  Science  Churchy  which  he  calls  "a  friendly  re- 
view of  its  administration  and  a  plea  for  liberty  in  Christian 
Science,"  and  in  which — in  the  friendliest  spirit,  as  is  always 
done  when  Christian  Scientists  fall  out — ^he  offers  unbidden  his 
unwelcome  service  "to  help  the  organization  shake  off  the  swad- 
dling clothes  which  it  has  outgrown."  ^ 

1  Hayes:  The  Lady  in  White  (New  York,  1921),  Preface  p.  xi. 
^Kratzer:  The  Christian  Science  Church   (Chicago,  1914),  p.  49. 

335 


236  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

But  these  are  faint  murmurs  of  dissatisfaction  and  not  likely 
to  exert  any  notable  influence  over  the  general  course  of  Chris- 
tian Science.  Of  vastly  greater  significance  are  the  dissensions 
that  every  now  and  then  crop  up  almost  anywhere  in  Christian 
Scientism  and  are  especially  virulent  in  its  center,  The  Mother 
Church,  the  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist,  in  Boston,  Massa- 
chusetts. As  briefly  as  possible  we  shall  here  sum  up  these 
latest  events  that  mark  directly  or  indirectly  the  passing  of 
Mrs.  Eddy.  Ominous  rumblings  of  a  coming  storm  were  heard 
repeatedly  during  the  last  years  of  her  life,  but  the  real  out- 
burst came  only  within  the  last  few  years. 

First  in  line,  though  not  in  importance,  was  the  suit  insti- 
tuted by  her  son  with  others  as  "next  friends"  against  some 
ten  prominent  Christian  Scientists  who  were  represented  as 
keeping  Mrs.  Eddy  under  their  control  for  personal  reasons. 
To  indicate  the  trend  of  events,  a  few  explanatory  notes  on 
Mrs.  Eddy's  earlier  years  are  here  in  order.  Mrs.  Eddy,  as 
already  mentioned,  had  one  only  son  whom  she  named  after 
his  father,  her  first  husband,  George  Washington  Glover.  In 
her  autobiographical  romance  she  indulges  in  some  touching 
paragraphs  about  this  boy  of  hers,  how  he  was  separated  from 
her  when  quite  young  and  how  "the  night  he  was  taken  from  her 
she  knelt  by  his  side  throughout  the  dark  hours  hoping 
for  a  vision  of  relief  from  this  trial."  ^  A  truer  picture,  how- 
ever, is  given  us  in  the  words  of  her  father  who  in  his  blunt  way 
is  reported  to  have  said  of  her:  "Mary  acts  like  an  old  ewe  that 
won't  own  its  lamb.  She  won't  have  the  boy  near  her."  ^  The 
boy  was  adopted  by  the  nurse  that  had  tended  to  him  ever  since 
his  birth,  and  from  1857,  when  he  removed  with  his  foster  par- 
ents to  Minnesota,  until  1878,  his  mother  evinced  not  the  slight- 
est interest  in  him.  By  that  time  he  was  himself  married  and 
had  two  children.  The  3^ear  1878  was  an  eventful  one  for  Mrs. 
Eddy.  There  was  trouble  brewing  in  her  little  flock  of  disciples. 
Kennedy,  though  long  since  passed  out  of  her  life,  still  remained 
fresh  in  her  thought.  The  dread  of  malicious  animal  magnetism 
was   fast   becoming  an   obsession.      Spoff^ord   she  had   excom- 


^  Introspection  and  Retrospection,  p.  21, 
'Milmine:  op.  cit.,  p.  26, 


The  Latest  Events  iii  Christian  Science 

municated.  The  law-courts  were  kept  busy  with  her  litigations. 
Kennedy,  Tuttle,  Stanley  and  SpofFord  were  sued  to  recover 
money  from  them  for  one  reason  or  another;  Spofford  was 
sued  a  second  time  in  the  famous  witchcraft  case.  In  October 
her  husband  and  Arens  were  arrested  on  a  charge  of  conspiracy 
to  murder  Spofford.^  Under  these  circumstances  Mrs.  Eddy 
bethought  herself  of  her  son.  She  probably  wondered  whether 
he  could  fit  in  with  her  designs.  She  sent  him  a  telegram  ask- 
ing him  to  meet  her  at  Cincinnati,  but  did  not  herself  keep  the 
appointment.  Finally,  she  invited  him  to  come  to  Boston, 
where  mother  and  son  met  after  a  separation  of  twenty-three 
years.  After  this  first  interview  they  met  again  occasionally, 
but  it  was  never  again  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  seeking.  In  1887  she 
positively  forbade  him  to  come. 

"I,"  she  wrote  to  him,  "want  quiet  and  Christian  life  alone 
with  God,  when  I  can  find  intervals  for  a  little  rest.  You  are 
not  what  I  had  hoped  to  find  yon^  and  I  am  changed.  The 
world,  the  flesh  and  evil  I  am  at  war  with,  and  if  any  one 
comes  to  me  it  must  be  to  help  me  and  not  to  hinder  me  in 
this  warfare."  ^ 

On  January  2,  1907,  Mr.  Glover,  in  company  with  his 
daughter,  paid  his  mother  a  last  visit  and  was  shocked  at  her 
physical  condition  and  at  the  rambling,  incoherent  nature  of 
her  conversation.  Mr.  Glover  understood  her  to  mean  that 
she  was  kept  under  restraint  by  the  persons  with  whom  she 
lived  and  resolved  to  take  steps  to  break  the  ring  which  made 
approach  to  her  almost  impossible.  On  March  1,  he  began  an 
action  in  behalf  of  his  mother  against  Calvin  Frye,  Alfred  Far- 
low  and  the  officers  of  The  Mother  Church  asking  "for  an  ad- 
judication that  Mrs.  Eddy  was  incompetent  through  age  and 
failing  faculties  to  manage  her  estate;  that  a  receiver  be  ap- 
pointed and  that  the  various  defendants  named  be  required  to 
account  for  alleged  misuse  of  her  property."  ^  This  suit  must 
have  caused  Mrs.  Eddy  no  little  annoyance.  Her  business 
abilities,  though,  did  not  forsake  her  in  this  emergency.    Within 

*  Milmine,  op.  cit.,  pp.  250-361.  -      ^« 

=»Eddy:  letter  dated  October  31,  1887,  quoted  by  Milmine,  p.  455* 
''Ihid.,  pp.  456-458,  ^ 


238  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

six  days  she  met  the  action  of  her  son  and  self-styled  friends  by 
the  declaration  of  a  trusteeship  for  the  control  of  her  estate, 
thus  forcing  them,  in  the  end,  to  withdraw  their  suit. 

About  this  time  Mrs.  Eddy  became  dissatisfied  with  her  resi- 
dence at  Pleasant  View.  Mesmerism,  the  primal  source  of  all  her 
troubles,  had  at  last  found  her  retreat,  and,  as  in  her  mind  it 
had  a  tendency  to  become  localized,  she  must  absolutely  change 
her  abode.  A  splendid  mansion  was  bought  at  Newton,  a 
suburb  of  Boston,  and  remodeled  in  all  haste,  regardless  of  cost, 
several  hundred  laborers  being  employed  day  and  night  at  this 
work.  On  January  26,  1908,  Mrs.  Eddy  left  forever  her  splen- 
did mansion  near  Concord,  New  Hampshire,  where  she  had 
resided  for  the  last  seventeen  years. 

"Extraordinary  precautions  were  taken  to  prevent  acci- 
dents. A  pilot  engine  preceded  the  locomotive  which  drew 
Mrs.  Eddy's  special  train,  and  the  train  was  followed  by  a 
third  engine  to  prevent  the  possibility  of  a  rear  end  col- 
lision.^'  ^ 

When  she  arrived  at  her  new  home,  she  had  to  be  lifted  out 
of  her  carriage  and  carried  into  the  house  by  one  of  her  male 
attendants. 

But  despite  these  infirmities  and  her  eighty-seven  years 
Mrs.  Eddy  was  apparently  still  on  the  watch  for  possible  rivals, 
and  with  the  help  of  her  spiritual  household  was  able  to  frus- 
trate any  design  that  tended  to  diminish  the  luster  of  her  own 
achievements.  First  in  importance  after  The  Mother  Church 
in  Boston  was  the  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist,  in  New 
York  City.  The  latter  was  almost  as  much  the  personal  work 
of  Mrs.  Augusta  E.  Stetson  as  the  former  was  that  of  Mrs. 
Eddy.  A  magnificent  church  edifice,  erected  at  a  cost  of 
$1,250,000  and  dedicated  as  soon  as  completed  free  of  debt, 
testified  to  the  ardent  zeal  of  this  disciple.  Mrs.  Stetson  could 
boast  that  besides  herself  not  a  member  of  the  Mother  Church 
had  contributed  one  dollar  for  its  erection.  Provision  had  been 
made  in  the  church  edifice  itself  for  the  work  of  the  practi- 
tioners, some  twenty-five  of  whom  could  meet  their  patients  there 

*MUinme:  op.  cit.,  p.  458. 


The  Latest  Events  in  Christian  Science  239 

in  separate  rooms  designed  and  equipped  for  that  very  pur- 
pose.^ Here  Mrs.  Stetson  organized  her  band  of  healers,  met 
them  daily  at  noon  for  spiritual  instruction  and  trained  them 
presumably  in  the  ways  of  the  Founder,  specializing,  so  it  seems, 
on  her  most  abstruse  and  most  questionable  doctrines.  Sex  mat- 
ters, spiritual  generation  and  similar  extravagances  of  Mrs. 
Eddy's  loomed  large  in  these  meetings. 

This  practice,  and  the  whole  trend  of  Mrs.  Stetson's  teach- 
ing, was  offensive  not  only  to  Mrs.  Eddy,  but  also  to  not  a  few 
Christian  Scientists  of  New  York  who  on  that  account  sepa- 
rated from  the  First  Church  and  founded  branch  churches  in 
other  parts  of  the  City  free  from  Mrs.  Stetson's  influence.^ 
Mrs.  Stetson  herself  sums  up  her  teaching  in  the  following 
concise  statement :  "I  declared  for  the  nothingness  of  material 
generation,  and  the  greatness,  allness  of  the  spiritual  man  and 
the  spiritual  universe."  ^  Over  her  followers  Mrs.  Stetson  ex- 
ercised an  influence  comparable  only  to  that  of  Mrs.  Eddy 
in  her  palmiest  days.  No  wonder  the  report  went  abroad  that 
Mrs.  Stetson  was  in  training  to  become  Mrs.  Eddy's  successor. 
This  rumor,  even  had  it  been  entirely  groundless,  was  enough  to 
mar  the  friendship  of  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century's  dura- 
tion between  Mrs.  Stetson  and  her  idolized  teacher.  From  the 
day  that  it  reached  Mrs.  Eddy's  ear,  Mrs.  Stetson's  position 
in  Christian  Scientism  was  doomed. 

As  the  work  of  First  Church  in  New  York,  in  spite  of 
numerous  defections,  had  prospered  to  such  an  extent  that  as 
many  as  two  to  three  hundred  people  had  to  stand  on  Sunday 
mornings,  Mrs.  Stetson  remedied  these  conditions  in  1908  by 
providing  an  overflow  service  in  the  Reading  Room.  Before 
long  the  following  by-law  appeared  in  the  Church  Mamuil  and, 
put  an  end  to  this  practice:  "A  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist, 
shall  not  hold  two  or  more  Sunday  services  at  the  same  hour."  * 

*  Stetson:  Vital  Issues  (New  York,  1917),  p.  105. 

^Ibid.,  p.  109.  "Some  of  the  practitioners  began  early  to  cavil  at  and 
criticize  the  incisive  methods  of  handling  the  animal  impulses.  ...  It  was 
not,  however,  so  much  the  challenging  of  language  as  it  was  the  burning 
incision  of  spiritual  truth  into  the  strongholds  of  mortal  belief  that  gave 
rise  to  charges  against  the  character  of  these  meetings," 

•Ibid.,  p.  110. 

*  Church  Manual,  Art.  XVII,  sect.  4. 


240  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

If  Mrs.  Stetson  had  been  less  infatuated  with  her  own  impor- 
tance, she  would  have  accepted  this  almost  personal  rebuff  as  a 
warning  of  an  impending  catastrophe.  As  others  had  done 
before  her  for  their  undoing,  she  rested  too  securely  on  Mrs. 
Eddy's  former  professions  of  friendship.  She  now  proposed, 
in  order  to  remedy  the  crowded  condition  of  her  congregation, 
to  build  on  the  fashionable  Riverside  Drive  a  church  which  was 
to  "rival  in  beauty  of  architecture  any  other  religious  struc- 
ture in  America."  ^  The  plot  for  the  proposed  buildings  was 
secured  late  in  November,  1908,  at  a  price  of  $390,000. 

This  was  almost  like  throwing  the  gauntlet  down  before  the 
authorities  in  Boston.  Whatever  may  have  been  in  Mrs.  Stet- 
son's mind,  the  Boston  group  of  Scientists  seemed  to  accept  it 
as  such,  or  rather  to  look  upon  these  ambitions  as  most  dan- 
gerous symptoms  of  a  disease  that  needed  the  surgeon's  knife 
without  delay.  Already  on  December  5,  the  Christian  Science 
Sentind  brought  several  editorials  that  censured  the  project  in 
the  most  direct  manner.  In  an  article  entitled  "Consistency" 
we  read  the  following  apostrophe: 

"Are  you  striving  in  Christian  Science  to  be  the  best 
Christian  on  earth,  or  are  you  striving  to  have  the  most 
costly  edifice  on  the  earth  ?  .  .  .  Mrs.  Eddy  has  continued  to 
declare  against  the  display  of  material  things,  and  has  said 
that  the  less  we  huve  of  them  the  better.  Since  God  has 
taught  her  that  matter  is  unreal  and  Spirit  is  the  only  real- 
ity, any  other  position  would  be  unscientific." 

In  the  same  issue  another  article  entitled  One  Mother 
Church  in  Christian  Science  has  the  following : 

"Concerning  these  news  items  it  is  to  be  said  that  Mrs. 
Eddy  was  not  'known  to  be  profoundly  pleased'  with  what 
purports  to  be  the  plans  of  the  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scien- 
tist, of  New  York  City ;  for  she  learned  of  this  proposed  rival 
to  The  Mother  Church  for  the  first  time  from  the  daily  press. 
Three  leading  facts  remain  immortal  in  the  history  of  Chris- 
tian Science,  namely:  1.  This  Science  is  already  estab- 
lished, and  it  has  the  support  of  all  true  Christian  Scien- 
tists throughout  the  world.  2.  Any  competition  or  any 
*  Stetson:  Vital  Issues,  p.  123,  127.    Snowden:  op.  cit.,  p.  184. 


The  Latest  Events  in  Christian  Science  241 

rivalry  in  Christian  Science  is  abnormal,  and  will  expose  and 
explode  itself.  3.  Any  attempt  at  rivalry  or  superiority  in 
Christian  Science  is  unchristian;  therefore  it  is  unscien- 
tific." 1 

Mrs.  Stetson  and  her  following  in  a  long  and  strong  com- 
munication to  the  editor  of  the  Christian  Science  periodicals 
bitterly  resented  the  imputations  of  these  editorials,  but  at  the 
same  time  meekly  submitted.  Her  request  that  this  apology 
should  be  printed  was  not  heeded,  not  even  acknowledged-  On 
January  16,  1909,  were  published  a  few  lines  purporting  to 
come  from  Mrs.  Eddy  which,  though  retracting  nothing,  acted 
as  a  soothing  balm  on  the  ruffled  feelings  of  the  New  Yorkers. 
But  this  was  not  to  last  long.  Again  Mrs.  Stetson  offered  her 
opponents  a  welcome  occasion  for  renewed  attacks.  Continuing 
to  be  deeply  attached  to  her  Leader,  she  committed  the  tactical 
error  of  forwarding  to  Mrs.  Eddy  by  special  messenger  as  a 
gift  a  sum  of  money  she  herself  had  received  from  some  stu- 
dents of  hers.  The  gift  was  seasoned  with  adulatory  messages 
which  contain  such  extravagant  phrases  as  the  following: 

"The  voice  of  the  Father-Mother  God  is  ever  speaking 
through  you.  .  .  .  You  are  known  to  us,  our  beloved  teacher, 
by  words  which  make  'our  hearts  burn  within  us,'  and  we, 
your  body,  quickly  and  gratefully  respond.  .  .  .  We  be- 
hold our  beloved  Leader,  Mary  Baker  Eddy,  revealed  to  our 
w^aking  thought  as  eternal  life,  and  you,  our  blessed  teacher, 
as  the  manifestation  of  Truth."  ^ 

All  these  messages  were  forwarded  at  the  same  time  to  Mrs. 
Eddy.  Mrs.  Eddy  accepted  the  gift  and  started  at  once  to 
discipline  the  giver.  In  her  letter  of  thanks  the  following  pas- 
sage occurs: 

"The  Scripture  says:  *Watch  and  pray,  that  ye  enter 
not  into  temptation.'  You  are  aware  that  animal  magnetism 
is  the  opposite  of  divine  Science,  and  that  this  opponent  is 
the  means  whereby  the  conflict  against  truth  is  engendered 
and  developed.     Beloved!  you  need  to  watch  and  pray  that 

*  Stetson :  Vital  Issues,  pp.  122-128. 

« Ibid.,  pp.  135-146.  .       .     ^ 


242  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

the  enemy  of  good  cannot  separate  jou  from  your  Leader 
and  best  earthly  friend.'^  ^ 

This  letter  was  dated  July  12,  1909.  On  July  23,  another 
letter,  more  direct  and  plain,  followed.     It  reads  as  follows: 

"My  Dear  Student — ^Awake  and  arise  from  this  temp- 
tation produced  by  animal  magnetism  upon  yourself,  allow- 
ing your  students  to  deify  you  and  me.  Treat  yourself  for 
it  and  get  your  students  to  help  you  rise  out  of  it.  It  will 
be  your  destruction  if  you  do  not  do  this.  Answer  this  letter 
immediately."  ^ 

On  July  31,  the  Christian  Science  Sentinel,  in  a  scathing 
editorial  entitled  None  Good  hut  God,  published  damaging  ex- 
tracts of  these  confidential  messages  and  then  continued : 

"This  is  emphatically  not  Christian  Science,  and  Chris- 
tian Scientists  will  note  in  these  quotations  phrases  for  which 
they  can  find  no  warrant  either  in  the  Scriptures  or  in  any 
of  Mrs.  Eddy's  writings.  ...  It  is  time  for  these  students 
and  their  teacher,  and  other  students  and  other  teachers,  if 
there  be  any  in  the  same  belief,  to  awake  from  the  mesmerism 
of  which  they  are  the  victims."  ^ 

About  the  same  time  Mrs.  Stetson  was  summoned  before  the 
Board  of  Directors,  one  witness  confronting  her,  but  on  August 
3,  these  charges  were,  apparently,  dismissed. 

In  reality  the  Board  of  Directors  prepared  to  spread  a 
dragnet  around  Mrs.  Stetson  which  should  definitely  put  her 
out  of  the  way.  A  secret  investigation,  of  which  Mrs.  Stetson 
was  kept  in  ignorance,  was  made  which  on  September  25  re- 
sulted in  the  following  "Findings  and  Orders":  (1)  That  Mrs. 
Stetson  taught  her  students  that  the  branch  church  of  Christ 
of  which  she  was  a  member  was  the  only  legitimate  Christian 
Science  Church  in  New  York  City;  (2)  that  she  taught  an  er- 
roneous sense  of  Christian  Science,  particularly  in  regard  to 
the  application  of  Christian  Science  to  human  needs  and  con- 
ditions;  (3)  that  she  endeavored  to  exercise  a  control  over  her 

^  Stetson :  op.  cit.,  p.  155. 
» Ibid.,  p.  159. 
*Ihid.,  pp.  137,  25. 


The  Latest  Events  in  Christian  Science  ^45 

students  and  (4)  to  obtrude  herself  upon  their  attention;  (5) 
that  she  treated  persons  without  their  request  or  consent,  and 
(6)  attempted  to  control  and  to  injure  persons  by  mental 
means;  (7)  that  she  had  so  strayed  from  the  right  way  as  not 
to  be  fit  for  the  work  of  a  teacher  of  Christian  Science. 

In  view  of  these  findings  the  directors  ordered  that  her  card 
be  removed  from  the  Christian,  Science  Joumaly  and  that  her 
license  or  authority  to  teach  Christian  Science  be  revoked.^ 
On  November  17  her  name  was  dropped  from  the  roll  of  the 
Mother  Church,  which  automatically  deprived  her  of  any  po- 
sition of  trust  in  her  own  church.  That,  notwithstanding  Mrs. 
Stetson's  protestations  to  the  contrary,  Mrs.  Eddy  was  back 
of  these  proceedings,  is  rendered  evident  by  the  following  letter 
written  only  four  days  before  Mrs.  Stetson's  excommunication : 

Brookline,  Mass., 

November  13,  1909. 
To  the  Board  of  Trustees,  First  Church  of  Christ, 
Scientist,  New  York  Cit2/: 
Beloved  Brethren:    In  consideration  of  the  present  mo- 
mentous question  at  issue  in  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist, 
New  York  City,  I  am  constrained  to  say,  if  I  can  settle  this 
church  difficulty  amicably  by  a  few  words,  as  many  students 
think  I  can,  I  herewith  cheerfully  subscribe  these  words  of 
love : — 

My  beloved  brethren  in  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist, 
New  York  City,  I  advise  you  with  all  my  soul  to  support  the 
Directors  of  The  Mother  Church,  and  unite  with  those  in 
your  church  who  are  supporting  The  Mother  Church  Direc- 
tors. Abide  in  fellowship  with  and  obedience  to  The  Mother 
Church,  and  in  this  way  God  will  bless  and  prosper  you. 
This  I  know,  for  He  has  proved  it  to  me  for  forty  years  in 
succession. 

Lovingly  yours, 

Mary  Baker  Eddy.^ 

Despite  this  letter  quiet  was  not  fully  restored  in  New 
York.  There  remained  those,  openly  or  secretly  in  sympathy 
with  Mrs.   Stetson's   principles   and  practice,  who  w^re   con- 

*  Stetson:  op.  cit.,  pp.  53-55.    Cf.  Washington  Star,  March  6,  1921. 
'^Christian  Science  Sentinel,  November  20,  1909.    Stetson:  op.  cit.,  p.  92. 


^44j  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

vinced  that  a  gross  injustice  had  been  done  her.  Some  of  these 
shared  her  fortunes  of  their  own  free  choice ;  others  were  forced 
out  by  the  same  board  that  had  ousted  their  teacher.  Eight  of 
the  nine  trustees  of  the  Church  and  sixteen  of  its  practitioners 
were  thus  weeded  out  during  the  course  of  the  following  year, 
the  last  one  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  earthly  career.  These  joined  Mrs. 
Stetson  in  a  schism  which  is  now  known  as  New  York  City 
Christian  Science  Institute  with  Mrs.  Stetson  as  its  Principal.^ 

The  last  sensational  news  deserving  to  be  recorded  here  is 
the  rivalry  that  has  of  late  arisen  among  the  actual  heads  of 
the  Christian  Science  organization.  In  order  to  understand 
these  disputes,  it  is  necessary  to  have  an  idea  of  the  internal 
organization  of  Christian  Science.  Up  to  January  10,  1910, 
the  administration  of  the  Mother  Church  was  in  the  hands  of 
the  "First  Members";  but  on  that  day  Mrs.  Eddy  created  a 
board  of  directors  consisting  of  five  members  who  were  to  tran- 
sact all  the  business  of  the  Mother  Church  and,  under  the  direct 
supervision  of  Mrs.  Eddy,  were  to  elect  all  the  officers.  In 
1903  the  name  of  the  "First  Members"  was  changed  to 
"Executive  Members"  and  in  1908  this  office  was  aboli-shed.^ 

Besides  the  Board  of  Directors  there  exists  the  Christian 
Science  Publishing  Society,  established  by  Mrs.  Eddy  on  Janu- 
ary 25,  1898.  By  the  deed  of  trust  executed  by  Mrs.  Eddy 
in  that  year,  only  the  Publishing  Society,  always  with  the  ap- 
proval of  Mrs.  Eddy,  "selects,  approves  and  publishes  the 
books  and  literature  it  sends  forth."  ^  On  March  17,  1919, 
the  Board  of  Directors  voted  to  remove  from  the  board  of  trus- 
tees of  the  Publishing  Society  Mr.  Rowlands  who,  they  claimed, 
"did  not  understand  or  recognize  the  importance  and  necessity 
of  promoting  the  interests  of  Christian  Science  by  following 
the  directions  given  by  Mrs.  Eddy  in  our  church  by-laws" ;  "had 
shown  a  disposition  to  invent  or  adopt  interpretations  of  our 
church  laws  that  pervert  their  meaning  and  annul  their  effect" ; 
"had  set  up  the  deed  of  trust  against  the  by-laws  and  govern- 

*  The  whole  disgraceful  procedure  is  given  in  detail  in  Mrs.  Stetson's 
Vital  Issues.  The  war  between  the  two  factions  is  still  being  carried  on 
through  the  medium  of  the  daily  Press. 

*  Church  Manual,  Art.  I,  sect.  1-6. 
^Ibid.,  Art.  XXV,  sect.  8. 


The  Latest  Events  m  Christian  Science  S45 

ment  of  the  Church  and  threatened  this  board  with  litigation,  if 
this  board  exercised  its  right  to  remove  any  of  the  trustees."  ^ 

Mr.  Dittemore,  one  of  the  directors,  strongly  disapproved 
of  this  action,  because  he  considered  it  "an  utterly  inadequate 
remedy  for  the  evils  arising  from  the  mismanagement  and  mis- 
conduct of  said  publishing  society  trustees  .  .  .  insisting  that 
said  evils  imperatively  required  the  removal  of  all  three  trustees, 
especially  of  the  dominating  trustee,  Herbert  W.  Eustace."  '^ 
The  other  directors,  it  is  stated, 'were  well  enough  satisfied  with 
Mr.  Dittemore's  general  aim ;  but  they  disapproved  of  his  meth- 
ods, because  they  expected  that  the  other  trustees  of  the  Pub- 
lishing Society  by  refusing  to  submit  and  to  choose  a  successor 
to  Mr.  Rowlands  would  give  them  a  specious  pretext  for  the  re- 
moval of  them  all. 

But  things  did  not  take  the  turn  the  directors  expected. 
The  trustees  filed  a  bill  in  equity  to  compel  the  reinstatement 
of  Mr.  Rowlands  and  to  restrain  the  directors  from  interfering 
with  the  trustees  in  the  discharge  of  their  duties  as  trustees 
under  the  trust  instrument  of  January  25,  1898.  Mr.  Ditte- 
more also,  who  had  been  expelled  from  the  board  of  directors, 
asked  the  court  to  declare  void  the  vote  removing  him  and  to 
restrain  the  directors  from  interfering  with  his  rights  and  func- 
tions as  a  director.  The  hearing  began  June  3.  The  bitterness 
which  had  apparently  marked  the  disputes  between  the  two 
boards  crept  into  the  hearing.  "Sharp  clashes  between  the  op- 
posing counsel,  charges  and  countercharges,  made  by  witnesses 
and  lawyers  alike,  enlivened  the  proceedings  as  they  dragged 
on  through  the  fierce  summer  heat."  The  final  decision  upheld 
Mr.  Dittemore  and  the  Board  of  Trustees;  but  this,  far  from 
settling  the  controversy,  only  was  the  signal  for  a  new  crop  of 
legal  wrangles.     To  enumerate  a  few  of  these — 

1.  Mrs.  Emilie  B.  Hulin  files  a  petition  asking  leave  to 
intervene  in  the  suit  as  a  "First  Member." 

2.  Mr.  Edwin  A.  Krauthoif  asks  leave  to  appear  inde- 
pendently as  opposing  Mrs.  Hulin's  petition. 

3.  The  trustees  of  the  Publishing  Society  file  a  bill  of 
complaint  against  thirteen  members  of  First  Church  of  Christ, 

» The  Washington  Herald,  May  2,  1920. 


S46  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Scientist,  in  Boston,  to  which  later  two  other  persons  are 
added,  asking  the  Court  to  restrain  them  from  doing  anything 
to  injure  the  business  of  the  Pubhshing  Society. 

"It  is  charged  in  the  bill  that  the  defendants  have  under- 
taken to  procure  the  cancellation  of  subscriptions  by  Chris- 
tian Scientists  to  the  periodicals  of  the  Society;  have  inter- 
fered with  the  employees  to  hinder  and  delay  the  publication 
of  the  periodicals;  have  sent  out  false  and  misleading  state- 
ments in  reports  and  information  regarding  administration 
of  the  trust  by  the  trustees,  and  have  wrongfully  charged 
the  plaintiffs  with  having  withheld  from  The  Mother  Church 
large  sums  of  money  due  from  the  trustees,  and  also  that  the 
trustees  made  false  entries  in  their  own  books." 

4.  The  Attorney  General  for  Massachusetts  asks  leave  to 
intervene  in  the  trustees'  suit. 

5.  The  Board  of  Directors  and  the  treasurer  file  a  bill  in 
equity  asking  the  court  to  remove  all  the  trustees  of  the  Pub- 
lishing Society. 

"The  directors  charge  the  trustees  with  mismanagement 
of  the  business  of  the  Publishing  Society  and  it  is  said  that 
many  members  of  the  Church  have  canceled  their  subscrip- 
tions to  periodicals  issued  by  the  Society  because  of  their 
belief  that  the  trustees  are  not  loyal  and  consistent  Scien- 
tists and  are  not  living  up  to  the  doctrines  proclaimed  by 
Mrs.  Eddy."  ^ 

This  bare  summary  gives  an  inadequate  idea  of  the  condi- 
tions as  they  exist  today  in  Christian  Science.  Other  suits  are 
in  contemplation  and  there  is  much  unrest  in  the  Church  body. 
Mr.  Gilmore  as  Publication  Committee  for  New  York  denies 
"the  intimation  that  there  is  a  strife  and  schismatic  condition 
in  every  Christian  Science  branch  church."  ^  To  this  Mrs. 
Stetson  replies: 

"I  leave  this  remark  to  the  judgment  of  the  public  who 
are  familiar  with  the  lawsuits,  injunctions,  counter-injunc- 
tions, and  factional  strife  within  the  material  organization 
which  have  been  reported  in  the  press."  ^ 

*  Cf.   The  Washington  Herald,  May  2,  1920. 
'The  New  York  Evening  Mail,  February  24,  1921. 

•  The  Washington  Star,  March  6,  1921. 


The  Latest  Events  in  Christian  Science  247 

As  a  result  of  Judge  Dodge's  decision  in  favor  of  the  trus- 
tees more  than  two  hundred  employees  of  all  kinds  have  left  the 
publications,  and  a  committee  has  been  appointed  to  care  for 
these  "strikers."  Mrs.  Stetson  also  has  not  been  silenced.  She 
vents  her  grievances  in  the  newspapers,  charges  her  opponents 
with  boycotting  her  books,  removing  them  from  public  libraries, 
and  in  other  ways  preventing  her  witnessing  to  the  truth  as 
taught  by  Mrs.  Eddy.  On  October  2,  1921,  in  a  two  full-page 
advertisement  she  brings  before  the  public  her  difficulties  with 
the  board  of  trustees  of  New  York  First  Church  of  Christ  over 
a  fence  between  her  property  and  that  of  the  Church  which 
the  Church  insists  on  removing  while  Mrs.  Stetson  just  as 
strenuously  refuses.^ 

If  in  spite  of  these  many  and  ever  recurring  signs  of  selfish- 
ness Christian  Science  continues  to  attract  people  of  intelli- 
gence, we  may,  perhaps,  agree  with  Dr.  Cabot  in  assigning  in 
part  for  this  strange  phenomenon  the  following  reasons. 
Says  he : 

"It  is  not  difficult  to  perceive  as  one  studies  the  testi- 
monies recorded  in  the  Christian  Science  Journal  that  many 
patients  have  been  driven  into  Christian  Science  by  a  multi- 
tude of  shifting  and  mistaken  diagnoses,  by  the  gross  abuse 
of  drugs,  especially  of  morphine,  and  by  the  total  neglect  of 
rational  psychotherapy  on  the  part  of  many  physicians.  .  .  . 
The  success  of  the  Christian  Science  movement  is  due  largely 
to  the  ignorance  and  narrow-mindedness  of  a  certain  propor- 
tion of  the  medical  profession.  I  can  see  some  foundation 
even  for  such  an  exaggerated  charge  as  that  'the  doctors  are 
flooding  the  world  with  disease' — a  favorite  expression  of 
Mrs.  Eddy's.  No  one  who  has  seen  much  of  the  nervous  or 
hysterical  aff^ections  following  railway  accidents  and  of  the 
methods  not  infrequently  used,  not  only  by  lawyers,  but  by 
doctors,  to  make  the  suff'erers  believe  that  they  are  sicker 
than  they  really  are,  can  deny  that  there  is  some  truth  in 
Mrs.  Eddy's  charge.  Even  in  her  irrational  denunciation  of 
hygiene,  one  cannot  help  seeing  some  grain  of  truth  when 
one  reads  or  hears  of  the  multitude  of  petty  prudences  and 
'old  womanish'  superstitions  not  infrequently  exploited  by 

>  The  Washington  Star,  October  2,  1921. 


1\- 


^48  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

school  teachers,  parents,  and  teachers  of  physical  culture 
under  the  name  of  hygiene.  Believing,  then,  as  I  do,  that 
most  Christian  Science  cures  are  genuine — genuine  cures 
of  functional  disease — the  question  arises  whether  the  special 
methods  of  mental  healing  employed  by  Christian  Scientists 
differ  from  other  methods  of  mental  healing.  .  .  .  Work- 
cure  is,  I  think,  the  sanest  and  most  helpful  part  of  Christian 
Science,  as  of  all  other  types  of  psychotherapy.  The  Chris- 
^  tian  Scientists  do  set  idle  people  to  work  and  turn  inverted 
^  attention  outward  upon  the  world.  This  is  a  great  service — ■ 
the  greatest,  I  think,  that  can  be  done  to  a  human  being.  By 
setting  their  patients  to  the  work  of  healing  and  teaching 
others.  Christian  Scientists  have  wisely  availed  themselves 
of  the  greatest  healing  power  on  earth.  I  believe  that  sugges- 
tion, education  and  work-cure  can  be  used  in  far  safer  and 
saner  ways  by  physicians,  social  workers,  and  teachers  or 
clergymen  properly  trained  for  the  work  than  by  the  Chris- 
tian Scientists."  ^ 

Though  Dr.  Cabot's  statements  may  be  loose  in  details  and 
too  general  in  their  indictment  of  the  medical  profession  and 
of  health-crusaders,  generally,  they  afford,  nevertheless,  food 
for  thought  inasmuch  as  they  condemn  a  tendency  which  in  a 
different  direction  exhibits  the  same  preoccupation  and  pur- 
sues the  same  ends  as  Christian  Science  and  New  Thought, 
being  prompted  by  an  excessive  desire  of  bodily  comfort  and 
physical  health.  A  different  ideal  is  presented  to  us  by  St.  Paul 
who  gives  to  his  beloved  Timothy  the  following  advice : 

"Avoid  foolish  and  old  wives'  fables,  and  exercise  thyself 
unto  godliness.  For  bodily  exercise  is  profitable  to  little ;  but 
godliness  is  profitable  to  all  things,  having  promise  of  the  life 
that  now  is,  and  of  that  which  is  to  come."  ^ 

*  Cabot,  in  McClure's  Magazine,  Vol.  XXXI   (1908),  pp.  475-476,  article: 
"One  Hundred  Christian  Science  Cures." 
*I    Tim.  4:7. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

/.     Works  of,  and  on,  Mrs.  Eddy 

Mary  Baker  Eddy  :  Science  and  Health  with  Key  to  the  Scriptures, 
the  textbook  of  Christian  Science  (1st  ed.  1875).  Mrs.  Eddy 
continually  revised  this  book  up  to  the  end  of  her  life.  While 
later  modifications  are  of  minor  importance,  those  of  earlier 
years  are  most  radical.  For  a  comparison  of  earlier  and  later 
editions,  cf.  pp.  46  ff. 

:  Science  and  Health,  with  German  translation  on  opposite 

page,  Boston,  1912;  with  French  translation,  Boston,  1917. 

Christian  Healing,  Boston,  1880. 

The  Science  of  Man,  Boston,  1883.  An  original  draft  of 
Science  and  Health,  largely  embodying  P.  P.  Quimby's  words 
and  ideas. 

The  People's  Idea  of  God,  Boston,  1886. 

No  and  Yes,  Boston,  1891,  1908,  1917. 

Christ  and  Christmas,  Boston,  1893.  "An  illustrated  poem 
which  she  afterward  temporarily  suppressed  because  the  pic- 
tures were  very  displeasing  to  a  great  many  people.  One 
picture  represents  Jesus  Christ  standing  beside  a  big  black, 
upholstered  coffin,  raising  to  life  a  frightfully  emaciated  woman. 
Another  represents  a  woman,  strangely  like  Mrs.  Eddy's  author- 
ized photographs  in  appearance,  standing  at  a  bedside  and 
raising  a  prostrate  form,  while  a  great  star  burns  above  her 
head.  In  another,  Christ  is  represented  as  hand  in  hand  with  a 
woman  who  bears  a  tablet  inscribed  'Christian  Science.'  Mrs. 
Eddy  wrote  the  text  of  this  grim  gift-book,  and  a  fly-leaf  ac- 
credits the  pictures  to  'Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy  and  James  F. 
Oilman,  artists'"  (McClure's  Magazine,  1907,  p.  702).  The 
book  has  since  been  put  again  on  the  market. 

:  Pulpit  and  Press,  Boston,  1895. 

:  Church  Manual  of  the  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist,  in 

Boston,  Mass.  Boston,  1895.  Like  Science  and  Health,  the 
Church  Manual  has  undergone  a  series  of  important  revisions. 
In  its  present  form  it  contains  Mrs.  Eddy's  Church  legislation 
extending  over  a  period  of  many  years.  The  earlier  editions 
(1895-1899)  contain  a  full  list  of  all  the  members  of  the  Chris- 
tian Science  Church. 

:  Miscellaneous  Writings,  1883-1896,  Boston,  1896.    An  im- 
portant collection  of  documents  containing  questions  and  an- 

249 


S60  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

swers_,  addresses,  letters,  sermons,  instructions,  a  few  historical 
notes  (idealized)  and  poems. 

Mary  Baker  Eddy:  Christian  Science  vs.  Pantheism,  Boston,  1900. 

:  Messages  to  the  Mother  Church,  19OI,  1902,  1903. 

:   Unity  of  Good,  Boston,  1888. 

:  Rudimental  Divine  Science,  Boston,  1887-1909. 

:  Retrospection  and  Introspection,  Boston,  1899-  An  auto- 
biography in  which  Mrs.  Eddy  idealizes  all  the  most  trivial  and 
even  disgraceful  events  in  her  life.     Cf.  Milmine's  Life, 

:  The  First  Church  of  Christ,  Scientist,  and  Miscellany,  Bos- 


U- 


ton,  1914.     A  posthumous  collection  of  letters,  etc. 

Concordance  to  Science  and  Health,  Boston,  1903,  1908,  I9I6.  Ar- 
ranged on  the  plan  of  the  ordinary  concordances  to  the  Bible. 
Very  complete  and  up-to-date. 

Concordance  to  Mrs  Eddy's  Published  Writings,  other  than  Science 
and  Health.  Boston,  1915.  Same  remarks  as  above.  The  com- 
piler is  Albert  Francis  Conant. 

ScHON,  Marie:  Vergleichs-Arbeit  iiber  die  Gesamt-Ausgaben 
{187S-1912)  von  Wissenschaft  und  Gesundheit  mit  Schliissel 
sur  hi.  Schrift  von  Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy,  Berlin,  1914.  The 
author  would  like  to  have  the  1891  edition  of  Science  and 
Health  looked  upon  as  the  standard.  Requests  also  that  a  new 
German  translation  be  authorized  to  be  published  without  the 
parallel  English  text. 

MiLMiNE,  Georgine:  The  Life  of  Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy,  and  the 
History  of  Christian  Science,  first  published  as  a  serial  in 
McClure's  Magazine,  1907-1908,  revised  and  published  in 
book  form.  New  York,  1909-  The  most  reliable  life  of  Mrs. 
Eddy;  contains  many  original  documents.  Unfortunately  out 
of  print. 

Wilbur,  Sibyl:  The  Life  of  Mary  Baker  Eddy.  New  York,  19O8; 
Boston,  1913.  Idealized  throughout.  Aims  at  palliating  the 
many  disagreeable  facts  brought  to  light  in  Miss  Milmine's 
Life. 

Peabody,  Frederick  W.  :  The  Religio-Medical  Masquerade.  New 
York,  1910,  1915.  A  complete  exposure  of  Christian  Science. 
"There  is  absolutely  no  middle  ground.  Either  Mr.  Peabody  is 
the  most  shameless  of  calumniators  or  Mrs.  Eddy  is  the  basest 
of  charlatans.  Mr.  Peabody  expresses  an  eager  readiness  to 
have  this  question  submitted  to  any  test.  His  charges  run  the 
whole  gamut  from  attempted  murder  to  accomplished  theft, 
with  endless  lying  scattered  all  along  in  between.  They  are 
not  vague,  but  definite,  and  every  one  of  them  can  be  settled  as 
true  or  untrue.     Why  do  the  Eddyites  wait?     The  courts  are 


Bibliography  251 

open  and  until  Mr.  Peabody  is  a  convicted  slanderer,  no  sane 
or  decent  person,  man  or  woman,  can  afford  to  give  countenance 
to  Christian  Science"  (The  New  York  Times).  Mr.  Peabody 
was  counsel  against  Mrs.  Eddy  in  many  of  her  lawsuits. 

Dresser,  Julius  A.:   True  History  of  Mental  Science,  Boston,  1887. 

Dresser,  Horatio  W.  :  A  History  of  the  New  Thought  Movement, 
New  York,  1919.  While  chiefly  dealing  with  the  New  Thought 
Movement,  this  history  necessarily  touches  on  the  beginnings  of 
Christian  Science. 

Powell,  Lyman:  Christian  Science,  the  Faith  and  the  Founder, 
New  York,  1917. 

Podmore,  Frank:  Mesmerism  and  Christian  Science,  a  Short  His- 
tory of  Mental  Healing,  Philadelphia,  1909- 

Periodicals 

The  Christian  Science  Journal,  established  1883  by  Mrs.  Eddy.  A 
monthly  magazine,  the  official  organ  of  Christian  Science. 

The  Christian  Science  Quarterly,  published  January,  April,  July, 
October;  founded  by  Mrs.  Eddy  in  1890.  Contains  the  Lesson- 
Sermons  for  the  Sunday  services  throughout  the  world.  Pub- 
lished in  English  (regular  and  vest-pocket  edition),  English- 
Dutch  and  English-German. 

The  Christian  Science  Sentinel,  established  in  1898  by  Mrs.  Eddy. 
A  weekly  periodical. 

The  Christian  Science  Monitor,  an  international  daily  newspaper 
(except  Sundays),  founded  by  Mrs.  Eddy  in  1908. 

Der  Herold  der  Christian  Science,  a  monthly  magazine  in  German 
and  English,  authorized  by  Mrs.  Eddy  in  1903. 

Le  Heraut  de  Christian  Science,  a  monthly  periodical  in  French  and 
English,  established  in  1918. 

These  periodicals  are  authorized  by  the  Christian  Science  Pub- 
lishing Society.     Other  reviews  that  flourished  for  a  time  or  are  not 
officially  approved  by  the  Christian  Science  Publishing  Society  are: 
The  Boston  Christian  Scientist,  1889-1890. 
The  Chicago  Christian  Scientist,  1887-1890. 
Harmony,  San  Francisco,  1897-1906. 

Unity,  a  monthly  magazine  issued  by  the  Unity  School  of  Christian- 
ity, Kansas  City,  Mo.,  1891,  etc. 

//.     Other  Works  on  the  History  of  Christian  Science  and  New 

Thought 

Armstrong,  Joseph:  The  Mother  Church,  Boston,  1897.  Deals 
with  the  erection  of  the  church  edifice  in  Boston. 


^52  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Christian  Science  and  the  Practice  of  Medicine,  Milwaukee,  I9OO. 
Report  of  the  trial  of  Crescentia  Arries  and  Emma  Nichols 
charged  with  practicing  medicine  without  a  license — the  first 
unqualified  conviction  of  Christian  Scientists. 

Editorial  Comments  on  the  life  and  work  of  Mary  Baker  Eddy, 
collected  and  arranged  by  the  Christian  Science  Publishing 
Society,  Boston,  191 1. 

Farlow,  Alfred:  The  Relation  of  Government  to  the  Practice  of 
Christian  Science,  reprint  from  the  government  magazine,  Bos- 
ton, 1907.     Favorable  to  Christian  Science. 

Farnsworth,  Edward  C.  :  The  Passing  of  Mary  Baker  Eddy,  Port- 
land, Maine,  19II. 

Hayes,  Harold  Vincent:  The  Lady  in  White  and  Her  Marvellous 
Mission,  New  York,  1921.  446  pp.  "To  support  the  discoverer 
and  founder  of  said  Science  (Christian  Science),  Mary  Baker 
Eddy,  Pastor,  Poet,  Author,  who  was  and  is  in  her  real  selfhood 
the  Elect  Lady  of  the  Gospel,  forever  robed  in  white — I  have 
penned  and  published  this  book"   (Preface  p.  xi). 

HusE,  Sibyl  Marvin:  Christ's  Offspring  or  Spiritual  Generation, 
New  York,  1921.  "To  the  materialist  Mary  Baker  Eddy  seemed 
to  die;  but  there  was  one  faithful  watcher  (Mrs.  Stetson)  on 
the  highest  mountain  peak  of  faith  and  understanding  who  dis- 
cerned, low  on  the  horizon,  the  dawning  light  of  the  coming 
radiance  of  the  fulness  of  the  Godhead  bodily,  even  Christ,  the 
compound  idea  of  Life  and  Love  who  should  rise  to  the  zenith 
of  demonstration.  .  .  .  The  clarion  call  rang  out:  'Mary  Baker 
Eddy  lives,'  Watch  for  the  revealing  of  the  ideal  man,  the 
Christ  of  God.  In  this  second  coming  she  is  conqueror  of  the 
female  belief  of  material  conception,  as  in  the  first  coming  he 
(Jesus)  overcame  the  lie  of  material  begetting;  thus  completing 
the  victory  over  the  dragon  of  belief  in  material  generation — 
Adam's  sensuous  dream  of  an  Eve,  his  own  lustful  self,  as  the 
mother  of  all  living!"  (Ibid.,  pp.  16-17).  The  last  words  are 
a  quotation  from  an  article  of  Mrs.  Stetson's  in  the  Indepen- 
dent, January  26,  1911- 

Kratzer,  Glenn  A.:  The  Christian  Science  Church,  Chicago,  1914, 
1920.  A  friendly  review  of  its  administration  and  a  plea  for 
liberty  in  Christian  Science.  "The  writer  not  only  believes  ab- 
solutely in  Christian  Science  as  taught  in  the  Bible  and  by  Mrs. 
Eddy,  but  he  is  wholly  friendly  to  the  Christian  Science  organi- 
zation. He  desires  to  do  what  he  can  to  help  the  organization 
shake  off  some  of  the  swaddling  clothes  which  it  has  outgrown, 
in  order  that  its  members  may  the  more  largely  enter  into  'the 
glorious  liberty  of  the  children  of  God'  "  (Ibid.,  p.  49). 

Lord,  Myra  B.  :  Mary  Baker  Eddy — A  concise  story  of  her  life  and 
work;  Boston,  19I8.     Favorable  to  Christian  Science. 


Bihliography  253 

Meehan,  Michael:  Mrs.  Eddy  and  the  Late  Suit  in  Equity. 
Authorized  edition,  Concord,  N.  H.,  1908.  Deals  with  the  suit 
of  her  son  and  others  as  next  friends  to  have  a  receiver  of  her 
property  appointed.  "This  lawsuit  disclosed  one  interesting 
fact,  namely,  that  while  in  1893  securities  of  Mrs.  Eddy 
amounting  to  $100,000  were  brought  to  Concord,  and  in  Janu- 
ary, 1899,  she  had  $236,200,  and  while  in  1907  she  had  about 
a  million  dollars'  worth  of  taxable  property,  Mrs.  Eddy  in 
1901  returned  a  signed  statement  to  the  assessors  at  Concord 
that  the  value  of  her  taxable  property  amounted  to  about 
$19,000  dollars.  This  statement  was  sworn  to  year  after  year 
by  Mr.  Frye"  (Milmine,  in  McClure*s  Magazine,  1908,  p.  24). 
The  suit  was  withdrawn. 

Stetson,  Augusta  E.  :  Reminiscences,  Sermons,  and  Correspondence, 
New  York,  1913.  Proving  adherence  to  the  principle  of  Chris- 
tian Science,  as  taught  by  Mary  Baker  Eddy.     1200  pages. 

:   Vital  Issues  in   Christian  Science,   New  York,   1917.     A 

record  of  unsettled  questions  which  arose  in  the  year  19O.Q  be- 
tween the  directors  of  The  Mother  Church  and  First  Church 
of  Christ,  Scientist,  New  York,  with  facsimiles  and  excerpts 
and  letters  of  Mary  Baker  Eddy. 

Correspondence,  Essays  and  Poems  of  Interest  to  the  mem- 


bers of  the  Choral  Society  of  the  New  York  City  Christian 
Science  Institute.     New  York,  I9I8. 

New  York  City  Christian  Science  Institute :  A  Tribute  of  Love  and 
Gratitude  to  Our  Faithful  Teacher  Augusta  E.  Stetson,  New 
York,  1921. 

Woodbury,  Josephine  Curtis:  War  in  Heaven,  Boston,  1897.  Six- 
teen years'  experience  in  Christian  Science  Mind-healing. 

:  Christian  Science  Voices,  Boston,  1885. 

III.     Works  on  the  Whole  Favoring  Christian  Science  or  New 
Thought  or  Modern  Mind-Healing 

i 

Baum,  Mrs.  C.  L.  :  Studies  in  Divine  Science,  Colorado  College  of 
Divine  Science,  Denver,  Colo.,  1909- 

Beecher,  Margaret:  Some  Truths  and  Wisdom  of  Christian 
Science,  New  York,  1904. 

Bryant:  Christian  Science  Teacher  and  Healer,  Chicago,  1891. 

Casey,  Robert:  God  and  Good  are  One — a  lecture  on  Christian 
Science,  1890. 

Chapman,  G.  F.:  Christ,  the  Healer — a  series  of  letters,  Boston, 
1888. 

Cramer,  Malinda  E.:  Lessons  in  Science  and  Health,  San  Fran- 
cisco, 1890. 


U- 


^54  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Cramer,  Malinda  E.:  Basic  Statement  and  Health  Treatment  of 

Truth. 

— :  Manuscript  Lessons. 

:  Genesis  Lessons. 

:  Divine  Science  and  Healing,  San  Francisco,  1905. 

Day,  George  B.:  Christian  Science  Sermons,  Chicago,  1889.     The 

new  interpretation   or  the   Scriptures   viewed  in  the   light  of 

Christian  Science. 
Dearmer,  Percy:  Body  and  Soul,  London,  1909.     An  inquiry  into 

the  effects  of  religion  upon  Health. 
De  Waters,  Lillian:  Thinking  Heavenward,  19O8. 

:  Journeying  Onward,  19O8. 

:  The  Hidden  Truth,  1919- 

:  The  Perfect  Vision,  1920. 

:  Lifting  the  Veil,  Stamford,  Conn.,  1921. 

Flory,  Jacok  Stoner:  Mind  Mysteries,  Mount  Morris,  111.,  1897. 
Flower,  B.  O.  :  Christian  Science  as  a  religious  belief  and  a  theror- 

peutic  agent,  Boston,  1909. 
Gestefeld,  Mrs.  Ursula:   Which  shall  it  be.  Mind  or  Medicine? 

(Pamphlet,  1886.) 

:  A  Statement  of  Christian  Science,  Chicago,  1888. 

:  Jesuitism  in  Christian  Science.     A  pamphlet  against  Mrs. 

Eddy, 

The  Breath  of  Life,  Chicago,  1897. 

The  Builder  and  the  Plan,  I9OI. 

The  Science  of  Christ,  Chicago,  1889.    An  advanced  state- 


ment of  Christian  Science. 
Greenbaum,  Leon:  Follow  Christ,  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  191 6. 
Harley,  Fanny  M.:  Simplified  Lessons  in  the  Science  of  Being, 

Chicago,  1899. 
Harris,  Walter:  Christian  Science  and  the  Ordinary  Man,  New 

York,  1917. 
Hasbrouck,  Stephen:  Altar  Fires  Relighted,  New  York,  1911.     A 

study  of  modern  religious  tendencies  from  the  standpoint  of  the 

lay  observer. 
Hegeman,    J.    Winthrop:    Must    Protestantism    adopt    Christian 

Science?  New  York,  1913. 
Hughes,  Nina  B.:   Twelve  Simple  Lessons  in  Christian  Science, 

1888. 

:  Truth  for  Youth,  Chicago,  1888. 

Kimball,  Edward  A.:  Lectures  and  Articles  on  Christian  Science, 

Chesterton,  Indiana,  1921.     486  pages. 
KoHAus,  Hannah  More:  Between  the  Lines — a  condensed  state- 
ment of  the  Truth  of  Being,  Chicago,  1897. 
Kratzer,  Rev.  Glenn  A.:  Dominion  Within,  Chicago,  1913. 

:  Spiritual  Man,  1914. 

;  What  is  Truth?  c.  1914. 


Bibliography/  255 

Kratzer^  Rev.  Glenn  A.:  Revelation  Interpreted.     400  pages,  c. 

1915. 
:  The  End  of  the  Age,  an  address  delivered  at  Oregon,  111., 

June  3,   1917;   Chicago:   Central   Christian  Science  Institute, 

1917. 

The  Christian  Science  Church,     Cf.  p.  5. 


Kratzer,  Elizabeth  Gary:  Complete  in  Him. 

:  Individual  Completeness  or  the  Trinity  of  Mind.  235  pages. 

Krebs,  Ebba  Victoria  :  Thoughts  as  They  Have  Come  to  Me,  Phila- 
delphia, 1916. 

Lord,  Frances:  Christian  Science  Healing — Its  Principles  and 
Practice,  Chicago,  1888.     471  pages  and  index. 

MacCameune,  Craig  (pseudonym  for  Ballentine  Frank) :  Science 
and  Scripture  Health,  Detroit,  Mich.,  1920.     551  pages. 

McMillan,  Liston:  Alathiasis,  or  Principles  of  Christian  Hygiene, 
designed  as  a  study  of  Scriptural  healing  and  involving  a 
medico-legal  view  of  Christianity,  Oskaloosa,  Iowa,  1895.  648 
pages  and  index. 

Mars,  Gerhardt  Cornell:  The  Interpretation  of  Life,  New  York, 
I9O8. 

MiLiTZ,  Annie  Rix:  Primary  Lessons  in  Christian  Living  and 
Healing,  New  York,  1904. 

Newton,  Richard  Heber:  Christian  Science,  the  Truth  of  Christian 
Healing  and  their  contribution  to  the  growth  of  orthodoxy. 
New  York,  1898. 

Robinson,  Charles:  Comparative  and  Rational  Christian  Science, 
Chicago,  1911. 

Sabin,  Oliver  C.  :  Christian  Science,  What  It  Is  and  What  It  Does, 
Washington,  D.  C,  1899.     64  pages. 

:  Christian  Science  Made  Plain,  1905. 

:  Divine  Healing. 

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• :  Christology,  Science  of  Health  and  Happiness,  Washing- 
ton, D.  C,  1901 ;  23d  ed.,  1910. 

Seward,  Theodore  F.:  How  to  Get  Acquainted  with  God,  New 
York,  1902. 

Shaner,  John  Junius:  The  Character  Builder  of  Scientific  Chris- 
tianity, San  Jose,  Calif.,  1913. 

Starcross,  Roger  (pseudonym  for  Chas.  H.  Pope) :  Christian 
Science  Theory  and  Practice,  Boston,  I9O8. 

Thiesing,  Winfried  W.  :  Nineteen  Hundred  Years,  or  the  power  of 
Christ,  Covington,  Ky.,  1898. 

Works,  U.  S.  Senator  J.  D.:  A  well-documented  plea  in  favor  of 
Christian  Science,  in  Congressional  Record,  Vol.  Lfl,  Part  I, 
pp.  1021-1055,  1915. 


S56  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

II 

Arens,  E.  J. :  Old  Theology  in  its  Application  to  the  Healing  of  the 

Sick,  Boston,  1886. 
Atkinson,  William  Walker:  Mind-Power,  the  secret  of  mental 

magic,  Chicago,  1910. 
Batten,  Loring  W.:  The  Relief  of  Pain  by  Mental  Suggestion — 

a  study  of  the  moral  and  religious  forces  in  healing.  New  York, 

1917. 
Brown,  Grace  M.  :  Mental  Harmony. 

:  Think  Right  for  Health  and  Success,  New  York,  I916. 

Dresser,  Horatio  W.  :  The  Power  of  Silence,  an  interpretation  of 

Life  in  its  relation  to  Health  and  Happiness,  New  York,  1 902. 

:  Methods  and  Problems  of  Spiritual  Healing. 

:  The  Perfect  Whole, 

:   Voices  of  Hope. 

:  In  Search  of  a  Soul. 

:  Voices  of  Freedom. 

:  Living  by  the  Spirit. 

:  Man  and  the  Divine  Order. 

:  Health  and  the  Inner  Life,  an  analytical  and  historical 

study  of  spiritual  healing  theories  with  an  account  of  the  life 

and  teachings  of  P.  P.  Quimby,  New  York,  19O6. 

:  The  Philosophy  of  the  Spirit. 

:  Handbook  of  the  New  Thought,  New  York,  1917. 

A   History  of  the  New   Thought  Movement,  New  York, 


1919. 

Dresser,  Horatio  W.  (editor) :  The  Spirit  of  the  New  Thought — 
essays  and  addresses  by  representative  authors  and  leaders, 
New  York,  1917. 

:  The  Quimby  Manuscripts,  New  York,  1921. 

Evans,  W.  F.:  The  Primitive  Mind-Cure — the  nature  and  power  of 
faith,  or  elementary  lessons  in  Christian  philosophy  and  trans- 
cendental medicine,  Boston,  1884. 

:  The  Divine  Law  of  Cure,  Boston,  1881. 

:  Mental  Medicine — a  theoretical  and  practical  treatise  on 

medical  psychology. 

:  Soul  and  Body,   or   the   spiritual   science   of   health   and 


disease,  Boston,  1876. 
Fillmore,  Charles:  The  Science  of  Being  and  Christian  Healing, 

12  lessons,  Kansas  City,  Mo.,  1912  (3d  ed.). 
Fletcher,  Horace:  Menticulture,  or  the  A  B  C  of  True  Living, 

Chicago,  1897. 
:  Happiness  as  Found  in  Forethought  Minus  Fearthought, 

Chicago,  1897. 
' :  Optimism,  a  real  remedy,  Chicago,  19O8, 


Bibliography  267 

Hudson,  Thomson  Jay:  The  Law  of  Psychic  Phenomena,  Chicago, 
1893. 

;  The  Law  of  Mental  Medicine,  Chicago,  1903. 

:  The  Evolution  of  the  Soul   and  Other  Essays,   Chicago, 

1904. 

James,  Fannie  B.:  Truth  and  Health,  science  of  the  perfect  Mind 
and  the  law  of  its  demonstration.  The  textbook  of  the  Colorado 
College  of  Divine  Science,  Denver,  Colo.,  1905  (3d  ed.). 

Mills,  Anna  W.:  Practical  Metaphysics  for  Healing  and  Self- 
Culture,  Chicago,  1896. 

Patterson,  Charles  Brodie:  The  Will  to  be  Well,  New  York,  1901, 
1906. 

Sadler,  William  S.,  M.D.:  The  Physiology  of  Faith  and  Fear,  or 
The  Mind  in  Health  and  Disease,  Chicago,  1912. 

Simpson,  A.  B.:  The  Gospel  of  Healing,  London,  1915. 

TowNE,  Elizabeth:  The  Life  Power  and  How  to  Use  It,  Holyoke, 
Mass.,  1906. 

Whipple,  Leander  Edmund:  Healing  Influences,  New  York,  1913. 

Wood,  Henry  :  Ideal  Suggestion  through  Mental  Photography,  pre- 
ceded by  a  study  of  mental  healing,  Boston,  1893. 

:  The  New  Old  Healing,  Boston,  1908. 

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tion, Boston,  1905. 

WoMER,  Parley  Paul:  The  Relation  of  Healing  to  Law,  Chicago, 
1909. 

Worcester-McComb-Coriat:  Religion  and  Medicine — The  moral 
control  of  nervous  disorders  (Emmanuel  Movement),  New 
York,  1908. 

Worcester-McComb:  The  Christian  Religion  as  a  Healing  Power, 
New  York,  1909- 

Wright,  Howard  F.:  Spiritual  Health,  New  York,  1913. 

Yarn  ALL,  Jane  W.  :  Practical  Healing  for  Mind  and  Body,  Chicago, 
1899. 

IV.     Works  Hostile  to  Christian  Science  and  New  Thought, 

Appler,  Augustus  C:  Christian  Science  Exposed,  St.  Louis,  Mo., 

1908. 
Armstrong,  R.  C:  Christian  Science  Exposed,  Nashville,  Tenn., 

1910. 
Barrington,  Arthur  H.:  Anti-Christian  Cults,  Milwaukee,  1898. 
Bates,  J.  H.:  Christian  Science  and  Its  Problems,  New  York,  1898. 
Bell,  Alvin  E.:  The  Word  of  a  Woman  vs.  the  Word  of  God — a 

lecture  on  Eddyism,  Burlington,  Iowa,  1917. 
Benson,  Margaret  :  A  Review  of  Christian  Science, 


268  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Brown,  J.  Elward:  Christian  Science,  True  or  False,  Which? 
Siloam  Springs,  Ark.,  1918. 

Brown,  William  Leon:  Christian  Science,  falsely  so-called.  New 
York,  1911. 

Buckley,  James  Monroe:  Christian  Science  and  Other  Supersti- 
tions, New  York,  1899. 

:  Faith-Healing,  Christian  Science  and  Kindred  Phenomena, 

New  York,  1892. 

:  "The   Absurd    Paradox    of    Christian    Science"    in    North 


American  Review,  July,  1901. 
Burrell,  Joseph  Dunn:  A  New  Appraisal  of  Christian  Science, 

New  York,  1906. 
Carter,  Ada:  The  Seamless  Robe,  New  York,  I909. 
Clark,  Gordon  :  The  Church  of  St.  Bunco,  a  drastic  treatment  of  a 

copyrighted  religion.     Unchristian  Nonsense,  New  York,  1901. 
Combs,   Geo.    Hamilton:   Some  Latterday   Religions,   New   York, 

1899. 
CooKSEY,   Rev.    N.   B.:    Christian  Science   under  the  Searchlight, 

Nashville,  Tenn.,  1915. 
CopPAGE,  L.  J. :  Christian  Science  in  the  Light  of  Reason,  Cincinnati, 

1914. 
Cushman,  H.  Ernest:  The  Truth  in  Christian  Science,  a  lecture, 

Boston,  1902. 
Evans,  William:  Why  I  am  not  a  Christian  Scientist  (pamphlet), 

Chicago,  1913. 
Farnsworth,   Edward   C:   The  Sophistries  of  Christian  Science, 

Portland,  Maine,  I909. 
Garrison,  Arthur  O.  :  Christian  Science  dissected  by  A.  D.  Sector, 

St.  Louis,  Mo.,  1900. 
Gifford,  Miram  W.  :  Christian  Science  against  Itself,  Cincinnati, 

Ohio,  1902. 
Gray,  James  M.:  The  Antidote  to  Christian  Science,  New  York, 

1907. 
Gilbert,  Mrs.  Viola:  Christian  Science  Uncovered — Its  black  art 

exposed.  New  York,  I9OO. 
Haldeman,  I.  M. :  Christian  Science  in  the  Light  of  the  Scriptures, 

New  York,  1909.     440  pp. 
Harker,  Ray  Clarkson:  Christian  Science,  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  19O8. 
Harlen,  Christian  M.  :  Christian  Science  against  both  Science  and 

the  Bible,  Dallas,  Texas,  1899. 
Hart,  H.  Martyn:  A  Way  that  Seemeth  Right,  New  York,  1897. 
Hall,  Isaac:  A  Christian  Scientist  Who  Never  Made  a  Demonstra- 
tion, New  York,  1907. 
Harwood,  Anne:  An  English  View  of  Christian  Science,  New  York, 

1899. 


Bibliographt/  269 

Haudenschield,  Charles  R.;  Do  the  Bible  and  Christian  Science 

Agree?  Los  Angeles^  Calif.,  1917. 
Lasswell,  William  P.:  Orthodoxy  vs.  Christian  Science  or  Anti- 
Christ  in  1900,  Hey  worth,  111.,  I9OO. 
McCaskill,  Charles  Wallace:  Fundamental  Religious  Teachings 

of  Christian  Science,  University  Place,  Nebraska,  1916. 
McCoRKLE,  William  P.:  Christian  Science,  or  the  false  Christ  of 

1866,  Richmond,  Va.,  1899. 
McClure,  Edmund:   Christian  Science  in  Modern  Substitutes  for 

Traditional  Christianity,  London,  1913. 
Mark  Twain:  Christian  Science,  NeW  York,  1899,  1907. 
Marsten,  Francis  Edward:  The  Mask  of  Christian  Science,  New 

York,  1909. 
Murray,   Sara    Vanden  :   Flesh   and  Matter — The   Scriptures   vs. 

Christian  Science,  New  York,  191O. 
Olston,  Albert  B.:  The  Facts  and  Fables  of  Christian  Science, 

Chicago,  1912.     399  pp. 
OuGHTON,  Charles  M.:  Crazes,  Credulities  and  Christian  Science, 

Chicago,  1901. 
Paget,  Stephen:  The  Faith  and  Works  of  Christian  Science,  New 

York,  1909.    232  pp. 
Pease,  Charles  Giffin:  Expose  of  Christian  Science  Methods  and 

Teaching,  New  York,  1905. 
Prince,  Leon  C.  :  The  Sense  and  Nonsense  of  Christian  Science, 

Boston,  1911. 
Purrington,  Wm.    a.:   Christian  Science — an   exposition  of   Mrs. 

Eddy's   wonderful  discovery,   including  its   legal   aspects.      A 

plea  for  children  and  other  helpless  sick.  New  York,  I9OO. 
Reed,  Dr.  Eleanor  M.:  Christian  Science  and  Contrasting  Chris- 
tian Truth  in  Pan- Anglican  Congress  Report,  London,  19O8. 
Sandt,  George  W.  :  A  Brief  Study  of  Christian  Science,  New  York, 

1902. 
Sheldon,  Henry  C.  :  Christian  Science  So-called,  New  York,  1913. 
Short,  William:  Christian  Science,  What  It  Is.    What  is  new  and 

what  is  true  about  it.     New  York,  1899. 
Snowden,  James  H.  :  The  Truth  about  Christian  Science,  Philadel- 
phia, 1920.     313  pp.  and  index. 
Stafford,  Thomas  P.:  The  Origin  of  Christian  Science.     A  key  to 

the  writings  of  M.  B.  G.  Eddy,  Kansas  City,  1912. 
Stephens,  Percy  W.  :  Christian  Science,  its  Pedigree,  Principle  and 

Posterity,  Chicago,  1917. 
Sturge,   M.   Carta:   The   Truth  and  Error  of  Christian  Science, 

London,  1903. 
Swain,  Richard  La  Rue:   The  Real  Key  to  Christian  Science,  a 

surprising  discovery.  New  York,  1917. 


260  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Symposium:  Searchlights  on  Christian  Science,  Revell  Co.,  Chicago, 
1898. 

TowNSEND,  L.  T.:  Faith-Work,  Christian  Science  and  Other  Cures, 
Boston,  1885. 

Underhill,  Andrew  F.  :  Valid  Objections  to  so-called  Christian 
Science,  New  York,  1902. 

Varley,  Henry:  Christian  Science  examined.  New  York,  1898. 

Watson,  W.  H.  :  Juggernaut — Christian  Science  exposed,  Daven- 
port, Iowa,  1905. 

Whitehead,  John  :  The  Illusions  of  Christian  Science — its  philoso- 
phy rationally  examined,  Boston,  1907. 

Wilson,  John  M.:  Christian  Science  Falsely  So-called,  Louisville, 
Ky.,  1900. 

WiMBiGLER,  Charles  F.  :  Christian  Science  and  Kindred  Supersti- 
tions, New  York,  1901. 

Wood,  J.  G. :  Fallacies  of  Christian  Science,  Topeka,  Kans.,  1908. 


V.    Magazine  Articles. 

American  Journal  of  Theology,  Vol.  XIV,  October,  1910,  pp.  533- 

551 — I.  King:  "Religious  Significance  of  the  Psychotherapeutic 

Movement." 
Canadian  Magazine,  Vol.  XXXIV,  April,  1910,  pp.  521-527— J.  S. 

MacLean:  "Miracles  and  Mind  Cures." 
American  Journal  of  Insanity,  January,  1910 — Woodbridge  Riley: 

"Mental  Healing  in  America." 
America,  May  14,  1921.     See  Catholic  publications. 
Catholic  Mind.     See  Catholic  publications. 
Catholic  World.     See  Catholic  publications. 
Contemporary  Review,  Vol.  XCVIII,  November,   1910 — Podmore: 

"Mesmerism  and  Christian  Science,  a  Short  History  of  Mental 

Healing." 
Current  Literature,  Vol.  XLVIII,  January,  1910,  pp.  68-71 — "Real 

Issues  in  the  Christian  Science  Controversy." 
,  Vol.  LI  I,  January,  1912,  pp.  73-74 — "Mrs.  Stetson  on  the 

Immortality  of  Mrs.  Eddy." 

Vol.    XLIX,    November,     1910— "Psychological    Expert's 


Reason  for  Pronouncing  Mrs.  Eddy  Paranoiac. 

Current  Opinion,  Vol.  LV,  August,  1913 — "Mrs.  Stetson's  New  As- 
sertion of  Spiritual  Leadership." 

,  Vol.   LVII,   July,    1914 — "Spiritual   Healing.      Report  of 

a  clerical  and  medical  committee." 

,  Vol.  LXVI,  June,  1919^ — "Integrity  of  Christian  Science 


movement  threatened." 


Bibliographi/  ^61 

Current  Opinion,  Vol.  LXVIII,  May,   1920,  pp.   667-668— "Civil 
War  within  the  Christian  Science  Community." 

,  Vol.  LXVIII,  March,  1920 — "Physician's  Impeachment  of 

Christian  Science  Cures." 

Dublin  Review.    See  Catholic  publications. 

Hibbert  Journal,  Vol.  VIII,  October,  1909,  pp.  10-27— S.  McComb: 
"Christian  Religion  as  a  Healing  Power." 

Independent,    Vol.    LXXV,    July    10,    1913,    p.    74— "Projected 
Schism." 

,  Vol.  LXX,  January  26,  1911 — Mrs.  Stetson:  "Demonstra- 
tion of  Mrs.  Eddy." 

,  Vol.    LXXV,    September    11,    1913,    p.    624-628— J.    J. 

Walsh:  "Psychotherapy  as  Practiced  in  All  Ages." 
-,  Vol.  LXXVI,  October  9,  1913,  pp.  81-85— "Mrs.  Eddy  and 


Mrs.  Stetson." 

Literary  Digest,  Vol.  XLIV,  June  29,  1912 — "Christian  Science  and 
the  Jew." 

,  Vol.    XLIV,    May    4,    1912 — "Judaism   against    Christian 

Science." 

,  Vol.  XLV,  September  28,  1912— "Church  Ruled  by  Com- 
mission." 

,  Vol.  XLVII,  July  12,  1913— "Mrs.  Stetson's  Challenge." 

McClure's  Magazine,  Vol.  XXVIII  and  XXIX — Milmine,  Georgine: 
"Mary  Baker  G.  Eddy — the  story  of  her  life  and  the  history 
of  Christian  Science." 

,    Vol.    XXXIX,    1912,    pp.    481-494— B.    J.    Hendrick: 

"Christian  Science  since  Mrs.  Eddy." 

Nation,  Vol.  XC,  February  10,  1910,  p.  138 — "Origins  of  Christian 
Science." 

,  Vol.  XC,  May  19,  1910,  p.  503 — "Malicious  Animal  Mag- 
netism." 

New  England  Magazine,  Vol.  XLI,  November,  1909,  p.  311 — ^W.  D. 
Quint:  "Growth  of  Christian  Science." 

,  Vol.   XLI,   December,    1909,   p.   420— A.    Farlow:   "Mary 

Baker  Eddy  and  Her  Work." 
-,  Vol.   LI,  April,    1914,   p.    56— C.   A.   Woodard:   "Recent 


Growth  of  Christian  Science  in  New  England." 
North  American  Review,  Vol.  CXCVIII,  December,  1913,  p.  823 — 

Hegeman:  "Must  Protestantism  adopt  Christian  Science." 
,  Vol.  CC,  July,  1914,  p.  122— Hegeman:  "Must  the  Church 

adopt  Christian  Science  Healing.^" 
-,  Vol.  CC,  July,  1914,  p.  137— R.  H.  McKim:  "What  Chris- 


tian Science  Really  Teaches." 
Outlook,  Vol.  CVII,  July  25,  1914,  p.  692— L.  Abbott:  "Why  I  Am 
Not  A  Christian  Scientist." 


262  Christian  Science  and  the  Catholic  Faith 

Outlook,  Vol.  CVII,  August  8,  1914,  p.  73— "Christian  Science 
Again."  Ibid.,  p.  835 — "Does  a  Christian  Science  healer 
practice  Medicine?" 

,  Vol.  CVIII,  p.  73— "Christian  Science  Again." 

Quarterly  Review,  Vol.  CCXVIII,  January,  1913,  pp.  118-147— T. 
S.  Clouston:  "Mind-cures  from  a  scientific  point  of  view." 

VI.   Catholic  Publications  on  Christian  Science  and  Allied  Subjects, 

Benson,  Robert  Hugh:  "Christian  Science,"  in  A  Book  of  Essays, 

L.  C.  T.  S.  or  Herder,  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  191 6. 
BuoTicH,  Cyril  O.  F.  M.:  Christian  Science — An  apostasy  from 

Science  and  Christianity,  San  Francisco,  1916.  Lectures,  128  pp. 
Campbell,  T.  J.,  S.   J.:  "The  Delusion  of  Catholic  Science,"   in 

Catholic  Mind,  December  15,  1906. 
CoAKLEY,   Thos.    F.  I   Christian   Science  and  the   Catholic   Church, 

Pittsburgh  Catholic  Truth  Society,  pamphlet,  1912. 
Beattie,  Francis:    A  series  of  articles  on  Christian  Science,  based 

on  Milmine's  Life  of  Mrs.  Eddy,  in  America,  July  5  to  August 

16,  1919. 
Hart,  Dr.  T.  P.:  "Christian  Science  and  Faith  Cure,"  in  Summer 

School  Essays,  Vol.  I,  Chicago,  1896. 
Krull,  C.  p.  p.  S.:  A  Common  Sense  View  of  Christian  Science, 

Collegeville,  Ind.,  1908. 
Lambert,  L.  A.:   Christian  Science  before  the  Bar  of  Reason  in 

New  York's  Freeman's  Journal,  August,  1901-February,  1902; 

edited  and   republished  by  the   Rev.  A.   S.   Quinlan,  N.   Y. 

Christian  Press  Association,  1908.     212  pp. 
Meagher,  James  Luke:  The  Protestant  Churches,  New  York,  1914. 

pp.  614-646. 
RicARDS,  J.  D.:  Aletheia,  or  the  Outspoken  Truth,  New  York,  1885. 
Sasia,  Jos.  S.:  Criticism  of  Christian  Science,  in  Christian  Apolo- 
getics, Vol.  I,  San  Jose,  1903. 
Searle,  George  M.  :  The  Truth  about  Christian  Science,  New  York, 

1916. 
Steuart,  R.  H.  J.,  S.  J.:  Faith  Healing  in  the  Gospels,  L.  C.  T.  S. 
Thurston,  H.  S.  J.:  "Christian  Science,"  in  Lectures  on  the  History 

of  Religions,  L.  C.  T.  S.,  1911. 
Walsh,  James  J.:  "Psychotherapy,"  in  Catholic  World,  New  York, 

February  8,  1909- 
:  "Problems  of  Mental  and  Spiritual  Healing,"  in  Dublin 

Review,  October,   1916,  p.  301;  in  Living  Age,  December  23, 

1916,  p.  731 ;  in  Overland  Magazine,  April,  1917,  p.  306. 

:  "Psychotherapy,"  in  Catholic  Encyclopedia,  Vol.  XII. 

:  Health  through  Will  Power,  Boston,  1919. 

:  Religion  and  Health,  Boston,  1920. 


Woods,  Henry,  S.  J.:  "Christian  Science,"  in  Catholic  Mind,  May 
22,  19I8. 


INDEX 


Academic  des  Sciences,  14 

Mgae^  temple  at,  4 

^sculapius,  the  god  of  the  healing 

art,  4 
Albertus  Magnus  and  magic,  7  fn 
Antinomianism ;     Christian     Science, 

194 
not  openly  antinomian,  195 
danger    of,    196 
Apollonius  of  Tyana,  4 
Arens  and  the  witchcraft  trial,  100 
Assyria,  mental  healing  in  Assyria, 

1 
Atmosphere,    created    by    false    be- 
liefs, 78 
Atonement,  how  explained,  177 
Augustine,  St.,  on  magical  practices, 

6 
Autopsy,  condemned  by  Mrs.  Eddy, 

107 
Auto-suggestion,  physical  effects  of, 

159  f 
Avicenna,    on    the    powers    of    the 

human   soul,    7,   8 

Babylonia,  mental  healing  in,  1 
Bacon,   Roger,  and  magic,  7 
Baptism,    rejected,    178 
Belief,   meaning   of,   chap.    V.,    74, 
134,  154 
differs    from    faith    and    under- 
standing, 84 
all  beliefs  are  false,  74  f 
are  the  source  of  sickness,  133,  136 
to  destroy  the  belief  is  to  destroy 

the  disease,  154,  197 
various  erroneous  beliefs,  74 
a  mother's  belief  is  her  child's  sick- 
ness, 79 
see:  evil,  maliciaus  animal  mag- 
netism, mind    (mortal) 
Benedict  XIV,  on  tlie  imagination, 

166 
Benson,  R.  H.,  on  Christian  Science, 

33 
Bernheim,  on  mental  healing,  166  f 
Bertrand,  on  mesmerism,  14 
Biederwolf,    on    Christian    Science, 
194 


Board  of  Directors,  244 
Boston,  New  Thought  in,  29 

Mrs.   Eddy   returns   to,  238 
Braid,    on    hypnotism    and    sugges- 
tion,   15 
Brown,  Lucretia,  100 
Buckley,  on  mind  healers,  82  f 
Burkmar   and  Quimby,   16 
Burton,  Dr.,  cure  of,  115  f 

Cabot,    Dr.,    on    organic    diseases, 
126 
on   success   of   Christian   Science, 
247 
Celsus,  on  Christian  miracles,  5 
Charcot,  on  hypnotic  influences,  31 
Chicago,  Christian  Science  in,  29 
Mrs.  Eddy,  appearance  in,  19 
Children's     diseases,    mental    treat- 
ment of,  79,  113  f 
caused  by  parents'  beliefs,  79 
Christ,  as  distinct  from  Jesus,  208 
His  healing  powers,  213,  229  f 
His   cures   are  supernatural,  208, 
211  f,    220  f 
see:  miracles 
Christ   and   Christmas,   a  poem,  37, 

249 
Christianity,  opposed  to  magic,  5,  6 
Christian  Science,  name  of,  62 
beginnings   of,  26  f 
date    and    discovery    of,    36,    40, 

41 
natural  origin  of,  chap.  Ill,  35 
supernatural   claims   of,   153  f 
doctrinal  basis  of,  172  f,  175 
vs.  Gnosticism,  Manichaeism,  Do- 

cetism,  175 
inconsistency  of,  124  f,  127 
numerical  and  social  progress  of, 
23  f 
see:  Eddy  (Mrs.)  mental  heal- 
ing, New  Thought 
Christian  Science  Church,  founding 

of,  19 
Christian    Science    Church    services, 

21,   54,   189 
Christian  Science  cures,  examples  of, 
110  f 


S64 


Index 


Christian   Science   philosophy,   chap. 

IV,  60 
Christian    Science    publications,    37, 

249  f 
Christian  Science  Publishing  Society, 

244  f 
Church  Manual,  54  f 

forbids  taking  of  a  census,  23 
on  announcing  author's  name,  54 
on  ordaining  Science  and  Health, 

54 
on   duties   of  Readers,   55 
on    forbidding   written    formulas, 

against     hypnotism     and     mental 

malpractice,  98 
on  consulting  M.D.'s,  124 
Cleveland,  New  Thought  in,  30 
Colorado    College    of    Divine    Sci- 
ence,   29,    141 
Colly er,  lectures   on  mesmerism,   16 
Commercialism  in  Christian  Science, 
25,  55  f 
in  New  Thought,  138 
Communion    services,    178  fn 
Conception,  immaculate,  v.   genera- 
tion 
Confession  and  health,  134 
Conscience,  stifling  of,  205 
Crafts,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Eddy,  43  f 
Cramer,    Mrs.,   on   silent   treatment, 

137 
Creed,  absence  of,  173,  175,  180 

Davies,    on    Christ's    miracles,    227, 

2^  f 
Davis,   Andrew   Jackson,   40 
Delrio,  on  the  imagination,  165 

on  superstition,  8 
Denver,  Christian  Science  in,  29 
Deslon  and  mesmerism,  13 
Diagnosis    of    diseases,    condemned, 

124 
Disease,  origin  of,  78,   19 

organic    vs.     functional    diseases, 

121  f 
infectious  diseases  refused,  124 
not  essentially  evil,  193  f 
Dissensions  in  Christian  Science,  239 
Distant  treatment,  138 
Docetism      vs.      Christian      Science, 

175   f' 
Dresser,    Julius    A.,    a    disciple    of 

Quimby's,    QQ 
Dresser,  Horatio  W.,  on  the  begin- 
nings of  New  Thought,  27 
on  silent  healing,  137 


Drug   habit    cured,    115 
Drunkenness  cured,   162 
Dubois  and  mental  healing,  31 
Dubray,  on  the  imagination,  165 
Dunmore,  earl  of,  24 

Eddy,  Asa  Gilbert,  husband  of  Mrs. 
Eddy,  18 
the  murder  trial,  101  fn 
his    dread    of    malicious    animal 

magnetism,  106 
death  of,  107 
Eddy,    Mrs.    Mary    Baker    (Glover, 
Patterson)  :  her  birth,  17,  37 
girlhood,  of,  17,  38 
she    marries    George    Washington 

Glover,    17 
widowhood  of,  17 
she  gives  birth  to  a  son,  18 
marries  Dr.  Patterson,  18 
visits    P.    P.    Quimby,    18 
her  wandering  years,  18,  43 
discovery    of    Christian    Science, 

19,    36,    40f 
partnership    with    Richard    Ken- 
nedy, 18 
she  marries  Asa  Gilbert  Eddy,  18 
her    dread    of    malicious    animal 

magnetism,  chap.  VI,  95  f 
the  witchcraft  case,   100 
her  husband's  death,  107 
she    found   a   Church,   19 
Calvin    A.    Frye,    18 
Mrs.  Eddy  adopts  Dr.  Foster,  18 
differences     with     Mrs.     Stetson, 

239  f 
her  relations  with  her  son,  18 
death   of,   QO 
her  last  will,  23  fn 
her  teaching,  153 
her  business  abilities,  237 

see:   Christian    Science^    Science 
and  Health,  mental  healing 
Egypt,  mental  healing  in,  2 
their   conception   of  sickness   and 

death,  3 
their  healing  methods,  3 
Emanation  vs.  Creation,  200 
Emerson's    idealism,    69 
Emmanuel  movement,  33 
Epicurianism,  a  refined,  203 
Epidaurus,    temple    at,    4 
Error,  see  belief 

Ethics  of  modern  mind  movements, 
chap.  XIII,  192 
see:  sin,  antinomianism,  epicurian- 
ism 


Index 


265 


Eucharist,    the,    178 

Evans,  first  New  Thought  author,  17 

his  methods  of  healing,  137 

on  miracles  of  Christ,  209 

on   Confession,   134 
Evil,  existence  of,  153,  155  f 

unreality    of,    169,    174 

nature  of,  155 

see:  belief,  matter 

Failures  in  mental  healing,  134  f 
Faith  in  mental  healing,  133  f,  237  f 
in  the  subject,  231 
in  the  practitioner,  132 
of  Christian  Scientists,  203 
its  meaning  in  Christian  Science, 
84 
Faith  cures,   Hudson  on,  130 
Faria,  the  abb6,  and  mesmerism,  14 
Farmer,  Miss   and   Greenacre  Con- 
ferences,  28 
Fear,  its  effects  on  health,  168,  170, 
196 
cannot   be   entirely  banished,   205 
Fetish  worship  and  mental  healing, 

9 
Fillmore,  on  mental  suggestion,  139 
on    thought    causes,    204 
on  New  Thought  Creed,  180 
Fincastle,    Lord,    25 
Foster,  Dr.,  adopted  by  Mrs.  Eddy, 

19 
Freud,  and  Psycho-Analysis,  81 
Frye,  Calvin  A.,  19 

Gassner  and  mental  healing,  10,  11 
Generation,  spiritual,   199,  239 
Gestefeld,  Mrs.,  and  Christian  Sci- 
ence, 29 
Glover,  George  Washington,  husband 
of    Mrs.    Eddy,    17 
son  of  Mrs.  Eddy,  18,  236 
his    relations    witJi    his    mother, 
237 

suit  of  next  friends',  237 
Gnosticism    and    Christian    Science, 

175 
God,  nature  of,  70,  172 
His   Principle,  63,  64 
goodness    of,    203 
see:  Pantheism,  prayer,  Revela- 
tion 
Greece,   mental   healing   in,   4 
Greenacre   conferences,  28 

Healing,  see  mental  healing 
Health,   overemphasized,    173,   192 


Healthy-mindedness,  118,  202 

Heart  and  affections,  168 

Heaven,   meaning  of,   180 

Hell,   existence    of,    196 

Hickson  and  Christian  healing,  32 

Homes  of  truth,  29 

Hopkins,    Mrs.,    129 

Hudson,  on  healing  methods,  130 
on   miracles,   214,   215 

Hume,   on   miracles,  216 

Huse,  on  Mrs.  Eddy  and  Mrs.  Stet- 
son, 253 

Hygiene,   minimized,   130 

Hypnotism,  Hudson  on,   131 
hypnotic  healing,  15,  158 
Mrs.  Eddy's  hostility  to,  76,  98, 
157 

Ibn   Sina,   see   Avicenna 
Idealism,  and  Christian  Science,  68 
and  New  Thought,  69 
see    Emerson 
Imagination,      meditating      between 
sense  and  intellect,  148  f 
its  effects  on  the  body,  14,  164 
cause  of  sickness,  164 
see:  Benedict  XIV,  Delrio,  Du- 
bray,  Mark  Twain 
Intellect    and    mental    healing,    147, 

163  f 
Intellection     dependent     on     sense, 

148 
Intention,  ethical  importance  of,  203 

Jesus,  as  distinct  from  Christ,  176, 
208 
his  divinity  denied,  176 
see  Christ,  miracles 
James,  Fannie  B.,  29 
James,  William,  on  healthy-minded- 
ness, 118,  202 
John,  St.,  Gospel  according  to,  on 
miracles,  222 

Kansas  City,  Christian  Science  in, 
27,  29 

Kennedy,  Richard,  partner  of  Mrs. 
Eddy,  18,  92,  Q5 

Key   to   the    Scripture,   61 

Kratzer,  on  reformed  Christian  Sci- 
ence, 235,  25'2, 

Le  Roy,  on  fetish  worship,  9 
Liberalism,     in     Christian     Science 

theology,   89,    173 
Literature  on   mental   haling,  30 
see  bibliography,  249  f 


266 


Index 


Litigations,  Mrs.  Eddy's,  253 
the  witchcraft  trial,  100 
the  murder  trial,  101  fn 
the   next    friends'    suit,   236 

Logic  in  Christian  Science,  75 

Lourdes,  miracles  of,  232 

Love,  as  a  curative  disposition,  140, 
206 

Lynn,  fall  at,  41 

Magic  and  healing,  2,  6 

see  mental  healing 
Malicious  animal  magnetism^  nature 
of,  chap.  VI,  78,  91 
two   kinds   of  animal  magnetism, 

101 
its  various  names,  96 
its  place  in  Christian  Science,  97, 

108 
Mrs.  Eddy's  increasing  dread  of, 

93  f 
courts  to  take  cognizance  of,  99 
see:   witchcraft   case,    Spofford, 
Mrs.  Eddy 
Man,  nature  of,   69,  72 
Manichaeism    vs.    Christian    Science, 

175 
Manipulation,     practiced     by     Mrs. 
Eddy,  93 
discarded,  157 
Mark  Twain,  on  obscurity  of  Chris- 
tian Science  philosophy,  60 
on    spread   of   Christian    Science, 
24  fn 
Marriage,      depreciated      by      Mrs. 
Eddy,  198 
see   generation 
Maspero,  on  Egyptian  mental  heal- 
ing, 3 
Matter,  unreality  of,  QQ 
reality    of,    67 
creation    of,    Q5 
see  senses 
Maury,    on    magic,    6 
M.D.,  see  physician 
Meek,  Miss,  cure  of,  112 
Mental  healing,  prevalence  of,  1 
in  antiquity,  1  f,  chap.  I 
in  modern  times,  10  f,  chap.  II 
possibility  of,  147  f 
failures    of,    134  f 
extent  of,  Sadler,  Walsh,  Worces- 
ter, Mrs.  Eddy,  Evans,  121  f 
see:     faith,     disease,     methods, 
mind-cures 
Mental    malpractice,    see    malicious 
animal  magnetism 


Mesmer,  founder  of  mesmerism,  10, 
11 
his  "baquet,"  12 
his  philosophy,  12 
Mesmerism,  in  France,  13 

in   England,   Germany    and    Rus- 
sia,   14 
in  the  United  States,  15 
see:    hypnotism,    malicious    ani- 
mal magnetism 
Metaphysical  Club,  28 
Methods    of    mental    healing,    chap. 
VIII,  129 
Hudson's   classification   of,   130 
Christian       Science       and       New 

Thought  methods,  131 
tactual  treatment,  136 
silent  treatment,  137 
distant    treatment,    138 
Milmine,  Georgine,  on  Mrs.  Eddy's 
education,  39 
on  her  wandering  years,  43  fn 
on  Science  and  Health,  47  f 
on  character  of  Mrs.  Eddy's  phi- 
losophy,   97 
on  the  witchcraft  trial,  100 
Mills,  Anne  W.,  and  New  Thought 

healing,  29 
Mind,    Divine,    as    curative    agency, 

63,  75 
Mind  is  one,  63 

human,  an  autocrat,  80 
open  to  suggestions,  163 
subconscious  or  subliminal  mind, 

160 
source  of  mental  cures,  154,,  161  f 
a  healthy  mind,  202 
mortal,  meaning  of,  76   f 
works    of,    78 
the  source  of  all  evil,  78 
and  body,  interrelations  between, 
chap.    IX,    143    f 
see  soul  and  body 
mind-cures,  reality  of,  chap.  VII, 

109  f,  118  f 
Hudson  on,  109,130 
testimonials  as  to,  127 
reported   in   Science   and    Health, 

110 
in  the  Journal,  111 
in  the  Congressional  Record,  111 
explanations  of,  153;  Mrs.  Eddy's 
explanations,  153;  natural  ex- 
planations, 157,  chap.  X,  153  f 
see:   faith,  mental  healing 
Miracles,  chap.  XIV,  208  f;  mean- 
ing of,  217 


Index 


9.m 


Miracles,  and  natural  law,  215 
explained  as  psychical  phenomena, 

208  f 
explanations     by     Quimby,     209; 
Evans,  209;  Hudson,  215;  the 
Emmanuel     movement,     211; 
Eddy,  211;  Davles,  227,  229 
the  existence  of  real  miracles,  228 
ecclesiastical  miracles,  232 
attacks  on  Christ's  miracles,  216  f 
Miscellaneous  Writings,  57 
Moral  rectitude,  essential  to  healers 

and   patients,   132 
Mortal  mind,  see  mind 
Mother,  the  title  Mother,  58  fn 
Mysticism  in  Christian  Science,  71 

Nancy  school  of  hypnotism,  31 
New  Thought,  meaning  of  the  name, 
16  fn 

relations  to  Christian  Science,  16 

beginnings    of,    26 

literature,  27 

conventions,  29 

Creed,   180 
Next  Friends'  suit,  237 
New  York,  Christian  Science  in,  238; 
New  Thought  in,  27 

see  Stetson 

Origen,  on  miracles,  5 

Paget,  Dr.,  on  testimonials  of  cures, 

127 
Pantheism  of  Christian  Science,   63 

of  modern  mind-healers,  141 
Paracelsus,     founder    of    magnetic 

healing,  10 
Paralytic,  the  miracle  of  the,  227 
Paris  school  of  hypnotism,  18 
Paul,  St.,  on  the  effects  of  the  Spirit, 

204,  248 
Peabody,  on  Mrs.  Eddy's  claims,  59 

on  Mr.  Wiggin's  revision,  51 
Persia,  magic  in,  2 
Pharisee  and  Publican,  182 
Physicians,  Mrs.  Eddy's  hostility  to, 

124 
permission  to  consult  physicians, 

124 
attend  her  dying  husband,  107 
make  an  autopsy,  107 
Plato's  plurality  of  souls,  145 
Podmore,    Frank,   on    Gassner    and 

Mesmer,  11 
Poyen,  and  mesmerism  in  America, 

16 


Pragmatism,  no  sure  test  of  truth, 

171,  173,  192 
Prayer,   meaning  of,   188 

prayers    of    petition    condemned, 

184,  186 
no  remission  of  sin  through  pray- 
er, 183 
is   injurious,   186 
objections  to,  185 
audible  prayer  condemned,  187 
spiritual     interpretation     of     the 
Lord's   Prayer,   190 
Principle,  God  is,  63,  64 
Private  Meeting,  or  P.M.,  105 
Protestant   churches    and    Christian 

Science,  32 
Psycho- Analysis,  32 

Quimby,  Phineas  Parkhurst,  life  of, 
15 

becomes  a  mesmerist,  16 

his  cures,  16 

his  methods  of  healing,  136 

his  system,  16 

his  manuscripts,  47 

and  Mrs.  Eddy;  the  Quimby  con- 
troversy, 46  ^ 

on  Christ's  miracles,  209 

Readers,  two  readers  appointed  for 
church  services,  54 
can  make  no  explanations,  65 

Reed,  Dr.  Eleanor,  on  mental  heal- 
ing, 120 
on  Christian  Science  cures,  169 

Relapses,  how  to  be  met,  135 

Religion,    its    subordinate    place    in 
Christian  Science,  172 
contributes   to   success   of   Chris- 
tian Science,  35 

Renouf,  on  Egyptian  beliefs  in  sick- 
ness  and  death,  2 

Revelation,  Christian  Science  no 
new,  36  f,  43,  172 

Reville,  Albert,  on  fetish  worship,  9 

Rome,  mental  healing  in,  4 

Sabin,  and  reformed  Christian  Sci- 
ence, 30 

Sacraments  rejected,   178 

Sadler,  on  mental  healing,  126,  168 

St.  Louis,  mental  healing  in,  29 

Salvation,  meaning  of,  179 

San  Francisco,  Christian  Science  in, 
29 

Scholasticism,  avoids  both  material- 
ism and  idealism,  143 


268 


Index 


Scholasticism,  explains  mind  healing, 
145    f 
see    mind    and    body,    soul,    St. 
Thomas 
Science   and    Health,   the    textbook, 
19,  44 
history  of  the  book,  61 
make-up  of,  45  f 
first   edition  of,  45;   sale   of,  47; 
second  edition  of,  48  f ;   sub- 
sequent editions,  53;  Mr.  Wig- 
gin's   revision,  50 
ordained  pastor,  54 
takes  precedence  over  the   Bible, 

53 
necessary  to  every  Christian  Sci- 
entist, 54 
Scriptures,    spiritual    interpretation 

of  the,  60 
Searle,    on    reality    of    mind-cures, 
156 
on  Christian  Science  cures,  156 
Senses,    deemed    untrustworthy,    154 
pains  of  sense  sometimes  consid- 
ered useful,  193 
Serapis,  and  mental  healing,  4 
Sickness,  deemed  a  false  belief,  79  f 

often  a  means  of  grace,  193  f 
Silence,  entering  into  the,  137 
Simon  Magus,  5 

Sin,    Christian    Science    concept    of, 
196 
reality  and  unreality  of,  194  f 
genesis    of,    196 
guilt  and  punishment  of,  197 
supernatural    sanctions    dropped, 

197 
remission  of,  183,  197 
sin  and  sickness  classed  together, 

193 
Mrs.  Eddy's  own  sense  of  sin,  198 
Snowden,  on  progress  of  Christian 
Science,  23 
on  lack  of  order  in  Science  and 

Health,  60 
on  Christian  Science  antinomian- 
ism,  194 
Soul,  individuality  of  souls   denied, 
63  f,  145 
the    forma    substantialis    of    the 

body,  144 
its  functions,  146 
its   unicity,   145  f 
Spofford,    his    relations    with    Mrs. 
Eddy,    47  f,    237 
incurs    Mrs.    Eddy's    displeasure, 
48 


Spofford,    the    witchcraft    and    the 

murder  trial,   100 
Stetson,  Mrs.,  founder  of  Christian 
Science  in  New  York,  238 
difficulties  with  Mrs.  Eddy,  239  f 
the  "findings  and  orders,"  242 
principal  of  New  York  Christian 

Science  Institute,  244 
her  difficulties  with  First  Church 
of  Christ  Scientist,  247 
suggestion   as    a   therapeutic   agent, 
158 
effectiveness  of,  160 
truth    not    necessary   to    effective 
suggestions,  161 
Sumeria,  mental  healing  in,  1 
Superstition,     condemned     by     the 
Church,  10 
in  Christian  Science,  96 
Surbled,  on  hypnotism,  14  fn 
Synoptics,  on  Christ's  miracles,  224  f 


Thomas   Aquinas,  St.,  on  the  soul, 
145 
on  the  faculties  of  the  soul,  147 
on  the  imagination,  147 
Thought  transference,  204 
Townsend's  challenge  to  Mrs.  Eddy, 

128 
Trine,  and  New  Thought,  27 


Understanding,  as  opposed  to  belief, 
84  f 
its   prominence   in   Christian   Sci- 
ence, 85 
see:  intellect,  belief 
Unitarianism  and  Christian  Science, 
see  liberalism 


Virgin  Birth,  176  f 


Walsh,  James  J.,  on  psychotherapy, 

126,  151 
Washington,    D.    C,    headquarters 

for  New  Thought,  30 
Wentworth,   Mrs.,    and   Mrs.    Eddy, 

44 
Wheeler,    Mrs.;    and    Mrs.     Eddy, 

43 
Wiggin,  revises  the  textbook,  50 
his    opinion    of    Mrs.    Eddy    and 

Christian  Science,  51 
Will,  functions  of  the,  163 


Index  269 

Will,  essentially  evil,  161  Worcester,  on  suggestion  and  auto- 
suggestibility  of  the,  163  suggestion,  160 
Wine,  alleged  cure  of  a  baby  child,  on  extent  of  mental  healing,  122 

113  on    miracles,    211 

Witchcraft   trial,    100  Works,   Senator,   on    Christian   Sci- 

Woodbury,    Mrs.,    and    the    Prince  ence  cures.  111 

of  Peace,  201  Wright,  W.  W.,  and  Mrs.  Eddy,  92 


Universitas  Catholica  Americas 
Washingtonii,  D.  C. 
S.  Facultas  Theologica 
1921-1922 
No.   18 


THESES 


DEU8  LUX  ME  A 


THESES 

QUAS 

AD  DOCTORATUM 

IN 

SACRA    THEOLOGIA 


Apud    Universitatem   Catholicam   Americae 

CONSEQUENDUM 


PUBLICE    PROPUGNABIT 
AUGUSTINUS    MATTHIAS    BELLWALD 
SACERDOS    SOCIETATIS    MARIAE 
S.    THEOL.    LICENTIATUS 


HORA   IX  A.   M.   DIE   VII   lUNII   A.   D.   MCMXXII 


THESES 


In  Christian  Science  healing  there  is  nothing  that  essentially 
distinguishes  it  from  other  kinds  of  faith-healing;  consequently,  its 
successes,  real  or  apparent,  cannot  be  accepted  as  proving  a  sup- 
posedly supernatural  origin. 


Christian  Science  is  largely  an  adaptation  and  semi-religious 
elaboration  of  theories  and  healing  practices  which  originated  with 
therapeutic  mesmerism. 


The  doctrinal  basis  of  Christian  Science  and  New  Thought  is  to 
be  sought  in  the  extreme  liberal  and  unitarian  wing  of  Protestantism. 


There  is  absolutely  no  parallel  between  modern  mental  cures  and 
the  miracles  of  Christ  and  any  candid  comparison  must  bring  out 
the  clearer  the  supernatural  character  of  the  latter. 


The  rules  of  investigation  and  criticism  laid  down  by  Hume, 
John  Stewart  Mill  and  Renan  for  a  so-called  scientific  demonstration 
of  the  reality  of  miracles  are  not  bona  fide  rules  intended  to  foster 
the  acquisition  of  truth,  but  they  imply  an  a  priori  denial  of  the 
existence  of  miracles. 


The  rules  laid  down  by  Pope  Benedict  XIV  and  by  Catholic 
theologians  generally  to  establish  the  reality  of  miraculous  facts 
are  fair,  adequate  and  reliable. 


To  say  that  Christ  did  not  intend  his  miracles  to  serve  as  creden- 
tials to  His  divine  mission  is  to  set  aside  arbitrarily  the  evidence  of 
both  the  Johannine  and  the  Synoptic  Gospels. 


Theses 


8 


Christ's  miracles  are  today  what  they  always  were,  criteria  of 
the  first  order  for  the  divine  origin  of  Christianity  and  Immanentists 
are  ill-advised  when  they  think  to  find  a  substitute  for  them  in  per- 
sonal religious  experiences. 


Loisy,  while  ably  refuting  Harnack's  contention  that  "the  es- 
sence of  Christianity  consists  solely  in  faith  in  God  the  Father  as 
revealed  by  Jesus-Christ/'  exposes  himself  to  the  same  charge  of 
one-sided  criticism  when  in  turn  he  attempts  to  show  that  Christ's 
message  was  essentially  eschatological.  Loisy:  The  Gospel  and  the 
Church,  p.  3. 

10 

The  attempt  "to  distinguish  between  the  personal  religion  of 
Jesus  and  the  way  in  which  His  disciples  have  understood  it"  is 
not  only  difficult  as  Loisy  contends,  but  impossible.  Loisy,  ibid., 
p.  12. 

11 

The  contention  that  "Christ  never  gave  His  definition  of  the 
Kingdom  of  God  .  .  .  because  it  is  identified  in  His  thought  as  in 
the  minds  of  His  hearers  with  that  which  the  prophets  have  fore- 
told" cannot  be  defended  in  the  sense  that  Loisy  gives  to  these 
words.    Loisy,  ibid.,  p.  64. 

12 

Harnack's  arguments  against  the  genuineness  of  the  Petrine  text 
in  Matt.  I6:l6-18  are  not  of  such  a  nature  as  to  bring  conviction. 

13 

Modernists  wrongly  establish  an  opposition  between  the  Christ 
of  faith  and  the  Christ  of  history,  attributing  the  former  to  the 
spontaneous  efforts  of  the  faith  to  define  itself  as  well  as  to  the 
exigencies  of  propagandism  in  the  Greco-Roman  world.  Cf.  Loisy, 
ibid.,  p.  192. 

14 

It  is  certain  that  the  religious  society  which  Christ  had  in  mind 
was  not  merely  something  invisible  and  heavenly,  as  Harnack  con- 


Theses 

tends,  but  something  visible  and  external,  destined  to  teach  and 
guide  the  believers  into  all  truth  and  holiness.  Cf.  Harnack,  Das 
Wesen  des  Christentums,  p.  34  and  passim. 

15 

When  Loisy  asserts  that  "infallibility  in  a  terrestrial  theocracy 
signifies  nothing  more  at  bottom  than  absolute  sovereignty  in  an 
ordinary  state/'  he  gives  to  infallibility  an  arbitrary  and  wholly 
untheological  meaning.     Loisy^  ibid.,  p.  ]44. 

16 

"The  Christian  faith  and  religion"  is  not,  as  Loisy  insinuates,  *'a 
perpetual  and  universal  work,  to  which  each  contributes,  and  from 
which  each  derives  benefit,"  but  it  is  of  divine  institution  with  the 
Church  appointed  to  guard  and  teach  it. 

17-22 

By  the  decree  Lamentahili  of  July  31,  1907,  the  H.  Office  rightly 
condemns  the  following  propositions: 

XX.  Revelatio  nihil  aliud  esse  potuit  quam  acquisita  ab  homine 
suae  ad  Deum  relationis  conscientia. 

XXI.  Revelatio,  obiectum  fidei  Catholicae  constituens,  non  fuit 
cum  Apostolis  completa. 

XXXIII.  Evidens  est  cuique  qui  praeconceptis  non  ducitur  opin- 
ionibus,  lesum  aut  errorem  de  proximo  Messianico  adventu  fiiisse 
professum,  aut  maiorem  partem  ipsius  doctrinae  in  Evangeliis 
Synopticis  contentae  authenticitate  carere. 

XXXVI.  Resurrectio  Salvatoris  non  est  proprie  factum  ordinis 
historici,  sed  factum  ordinis  vere  supernaturalis,  nee  demonstratum, 
nee  demonstrabile,  quod  conscientia  Christiana  sensim  ex  aliis 
derivavit. 

LIII.  Constitutio  organica  Ecclesiae  non  est  immutabilis,  sed 
societas  Christiana  perpetuae  evolutioni  aeque  ac  societas  humana 
est  obnoxia. 

LXV.  Catholicismus  hodiernus  cum  vera  scientia  componi  nequit 
nisi  transformetur  in  quemdam  Christianismum  non  dogmaticum, 
id  est  in  Protestantismum  latum  et  liberalem. 

23 

The  so-called  Lambeth  Quadrilateral,  both  on  account  of  what 
it  contains  and  of  what  it  omits,  could  not  be  accepted  as  a'possible 
basis  for  reunion. 


Theses 


24 


The  proposed  World  Conference  on  Faith  and  Order  is  bound 
to  fail  in  its  aim  to  bring  about  the  reunion  of  Christendom  as  long 
as  it  slights  the  historical  foundations  on  which  the  Church  of 
Christ  is  built. 


25 

Church  unity,  as  established  by  Christ,  implies  unity  of  doctrine, 
not  compromise,  or  comprehension ;  unity  of  worship,  not  a  latitudin- 
arian  exchange  of  pulpits;  and  unity  of  government,  not  a  federa- 
tion of  independent  churches. 

26-30 

Recte  damnantur  per  decretum  Lamentabili  sequentes  proposi- 
tiones : 

XXIII.  Existere  potest  et  reapse  existit  oppositio  inter  facta 
quae  in  Sacra  Scriptura  narrantur  eisque  innixa  Ecclesiae  dogmata, 
ita  ut  criticus  tamquam  falsa  reicere  possit  facta,  quae  Ecclesia 
tanquam  certissima  credit. 

XXVI.  Dogmata  fidei  retinenda  sunt  tantummodo  iuxta  sensum 
practicum,  i.e.,  tanquam  norma  praeceptiva  agendi,  non  vero  tan- 
quam norma  credendi. 

XXVII.  Divinitas  lesu  Christi  ex  Evangeliis  non  probatur;  sed 
est  dogma  quod  conscientia   Christiana  e  notione  Messiae  deduxit. 

XXXIV.  Criticus  nequit  asserere  Christo  scientiam  nullam  cir- 
cumscriptam  limite,  nisi  facta  hypothesi,  quae  historice  haud  concipi 
potest,  quaeque  sensui  morali  repugnat,  nempe  Christum  uti  hominem 
habuisse  scientiam  Dei  et  nihilominus  noluisse  notitiam  tot  rerum 
communicare  cum  discipulis  ac  posteritate. 

XXXVIII.  Doctrina  de  morte  piaculari  Christi  non  est  Evan- 
gelica  sed  tantum  Paulina. 

81 

Trans formismus  mitigatus  non  adversatur  fidei  et  libere  propug- 
nari  potest. 


Attamen  salten  temeraria  esset  assertio  etiam  corpus  humanum 
per  longam  et  continuam  evolutionem  provenisse  ab  inferioribus 
corporibus  animalibus,  non  tamen  certo  esset  contra  fidem. 


Theses 


33 


Contra  Suarezium  aliosque  propugnamus  sententiam  hominem 
in  statu  lapsae  naturae  debiliorem  esse  homine  in  statu  naturae 
purae. 

34 

Contra  multos  Acatholicos  theologos  contendimus  Verbum  Incar- 
natum  se  suis  divinis  non  exspoliasse  attributis,  et  proinde  reiciendam 
esse  earn  quae  kenotica  dicitur  theoria. 

t5 

Contra  Modernistas  defendimus  thesim  Catholicam  dogma  Trin- 
itatis  non  esse  doctrinam  a  Graecis  mutuatam,  sed  esse  vere  doc- 
trinam  revelatam. 

Novae  Legis  saeramenta  naturalem  non  habuerunt  originem,  sed 
sunt  a  Christo  Domino  instituta,  et  quidem  immediate. 

37 

Probabilius  videtur  Christum  non  determinasse  materiam  et 
formam  omnium  sacramentorum  usque  ad  ultimas  individuationes, 
sed  Eeclesiae  potestatem  reliquisse  aliqualem  etiam  in  materiam  et 
formam. 

38 

Ad  validitatem  baptismi  requiritur  in  adulto  intentio  saltem  ha- 
bitualis  reeipiendi  sacramentum;  ad  fructuositatem  autem,  insuper, 
requiruntur  fides  et  poenitentia;  ad  liceitatem  vero  observandae  sunt 
regulae  liturgicae  et  canonicae. 

39 

Essentia  sacrifieii  Missae  consistit  non  in  destructione  panis  et 
vini,  nee  in  productione  Christi  super  altare,  neque  in  eo  quod 
corpus  et  sanguis  Christi  ponuntur  in  statu  decliviori,  nee  in  con- 
secratione  quatenus  est  actio  de  se  tendens  ad  veram  et  realem 
occisionem,  sed  probabiliter  in  eo  quod  Deo  Patri  ofFertur  victima 
iam  immolata. 

40 

Praeplacet  sententia  eorum  qui  tenent  episcopatum  esse  ordinem 
distinctum  a  presbyteratu  conferentem  plenitudinem  presbyteratus 
et  ordinationem  episcopalem  diacono  collatam  plenitudineiip  conf erre 
potestatis  sacerdotalis. 


Theses 

41-45 

can.  451-460  De  Nominatione  Parochorum. 
can.  2147-2161  De  Remotione  Parochorum. 
can.  542-546  De  Novitiatu. 
can.  762-759  De  Patrinis. 
can.  824-835  De  Stipendiis. 


46 


Non  omnes  leges  civiles  obligant  in  conscientia  ad  adimpletionem 
legis;  leges  enim  quae  dicuntur  mere  poenales  obligant  vel  ad  legem 
servandam  vel,  si  transgressor  legis  deprehensus  et  damnatus  fuerit, 
ad  mulctum  solvendum  vel  poenam  subeundam. 

47 

Omnes  homines  per  se  tenentur  ad  laborem  aliquem  utilem  et 
honestum,  neque  ab  hac  obligatione  excusantur  ii  qui  abundanter 
habent  unde  vivant. 

48 

Spectata  hodierna  conditione  socialis  vitae  non  est  amplius 
peccatum  iniustitiae  vel  usurae  moderatum  foenus  accipere,  etiam  ab 
eo  qui  utpote  pauper  mutuata  pecunia  utitur  ad  necessitates  vitae. 
Attamen  caritatis  obligatio  aliquando  urgere  potest  ad  verum  seu 
gratuitum  mutuum. 

4p 

Contractus  de  obiecto  turpi  aut  peccaminoso  nullomodo  obligat 
ante  contractus  executionem;  post  executionem  autem,  a  prima 
parte,  actus  turpis  aut  peccaminosi,  ex  circumstantiis  iudicandum 
est  utrum  an  non  altera  pars  ad  pretium  solvendum  tenenda  sit. 

50 

Homo  in  alios  homines  plenum  dominium  habere  nequit;  ius 
autem  in  alterius  labores  et  operationem  alterum  habere,  per  se 
quidem  non  repugnat,  at  etiam  eiusmodi  ius  saltem  minus  decet 
dignitatem  humanam,  et  ex  legibus  civilibus  omnino  tollitur. 

51 

Though  the  Christian  liturgy  was  based  in  part  on  the  services 
of  the  synagogues  and  was  gradually  perfected  during  the  course 
of  the  first  three  centuries,  it  was  and  remained,  nevertheless,  es- 
sentially Christian,  i.e.,  it  was  based  on  the  Christian  Revelation 
and  not  influenced  in  essentials  by  the  Pagan  mysteries. 


Theses 


52 


It  must  be  considered  as  historically  certain  that  at  least  from 
the  end  of  the  second  century  on  Roman  and  Catholic  as  attributes 
of  the  Church  were  in  a  way  synonymous. 

53 

History  shows  that  the  Roman  Primacy  dates  back  to  the 
very  first  ages  of  Christianity,  and  it  certainly  does  not  prove 
that  this  Primacy  must  be  ascribed  to  the  importance  of  the  city 
of  Rome  as  capital  of  the  empire. 

54 

Modernism  owes  its  origin  to,  and  developed  along  the  lines  of, 
Liberal  Protestantism,  starting  with  a  naturalistic  exegesis  of  the 
Sacred  Scriptures. 

55 

Attempts  at  Reunion  have  always  failed  in  the  past  owing  to  the 
practical  impossibility  of  finding  a  common  basis  that  could  be  ac- 
ceptable to  all  the  parties  involved. 

56 

For  a  critical  study  of  the  Pentateuch  Catholics  must  take  as  a 
norm  the  decisions  of  the  Biblical  Commission  of  June  27,  1906. 

57 

The  objections  raised  against  the  Mosaic  authorship  of  the 
Pentateuch  are  not  conclusive  and  do  not  overthrow  the  traditional 
opinion  as  to  its  authorship. 

58 

The  writings  of  the  New  Testament  traditionally  ascribed  to 
Saint  John  the  Apostle  have  really  Saint  John  for  their  author. 

59 

The  Acts  of  the  Apostles  must  be  considered  a  homogeneous 
work  whose  Lukan  authorship  is  not  doubtful. 

60 

Inspiration  must  be  considered  a  sufficient  guaranty  for  the  com- 
plete trustworthiness  of  the  Scriptures. 


BIOGRAPHICAL 

Augustine  Matthias  Bellwald  was  bom  September  14,  1881, 
at  Niederkerchen,  Grand  Duchy  of  Luxemburg.  His  classical 
studies  were  equally  divided  between  the  G.  D.  Gymnasium  of 
Diekirch,  Grand  Duchy  of  Luxemburg,  and  the  Marist  Mis- 
sion House  at  Diifert,  near  Messancy,  Belgium  (1895-1901). 
In  1901  he  entered  the  Novitiate  of  the  Society  of  Mary  at 
Washington,  D.  C,  where  also  he  pursued  his  theological 
studies.  He  was  ordained  to  the  priesthood  in  1907  and  spent 
the  following  eight  years  in  parochial  work  in  West  Virginia. 
In  1915  he  was  called  by  his  superiors  to  teach  in  the  Prepara- 
tory Seminary  and  at  the  Scholasticate  of  the  Marist  Society 
in  Washington,  D.  C,  where  he  taught  successively  Apologetics 
and  Dogmatic  Theology.  In  1919  he  matriculated  at  the 
Catholic  University  of  America  where  he  received  the  S.  T.  B. 
and  the  S.  T.  L.  in  1920.     He  is  specializing  in  Apologetics. 


RET 

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